Together at Last
by PartnerzInCrime
Summary: Sequel to 'Sweet Secrets'(You don't really have to read #1 to understand it though..)The path to love and marriage can be quite a strange and unexpected one...Is much more interesting than it sounds...By: hermione cline and f0xygrandma15
1. Tense Thoughts

A/N: Hey all! This is Lauren and Heather (a.k.a. f0xygrandma15 and hermionecline, respectively), and we're here to tell you that…you've reached the sequel to 'Sweet Secrets.' Please leave your message after the tone. 

We hope you enjoy this, we're writing it together, so you'd better like it or you'll have **two** people after you with baseball bats…anyway, here's the first chapter, be sure to read and review!!

Disclaimer: Seriously, if we owned Harry Potter, it wouldn't require two of us to write this story, now would it? Haha, just kidding, it's fun with two people, cause two heads are better than one!… Unless they're ugly. Then they're just worthless. Just kidding! Sorry, hyper. This is Lauren by the way. Heather is much more clever and cool. Lauren is just insane. Oh yeah, this thing had a point, didn't it…WE DON'T HARRY POTTER!!! 

Chapter one

Tense Thoughts

Hermione woke up and rubbed her eyes slowly. She quietly groaned to herself as she turned over to find a clock. 4:30…four thirty?? Huh, she said to herself as she turned over to go back to sleep. Just then, she heard a noise downstairs. In fact, several noises. Curious, she headed downstairs. As she placed each foot on each step, she realized just how many times she had gone down those stairs. And as soon as she stepped onto the hardwood floor, she thought about how many times she had felt the soft thud of her feet hitting that floor from that last step. And then she thought of how many times she had been in that house, how she had spent every summer for the past seven years in that very house. For some reason, which she could not explain, all of this captivated her. She looked around and saw the chairs, the table, the kitchen, and the clock that she loved on the wall…she began to think of all the memories she had had in that house. The burrow. Seemed like a home away from home, really. Well, there and Hogwarts. But then she realized that that was all about to change…they were out of school, out of Hogwarts…into the real world…She could have explored these thoughts more deeply had she not felt a tug on her shirt from behind. Before she could turn around, she was pulled into some room, which she was only able to tell because of the click of the door. She turned around and was met with that mischievous, lopsided grin. 

"Hey…" Ron whispered.

Hermione grinned broadly. 

"Hi," she whispered back. 

He leaned in and kissed her sweetly. She had to admit to herself, he sure was an amazing guy. She couldn't bare to even think what she would do without him. After having to share him with Lavender for a year, there was no way she would share him again. 

They had been perfectly content until there was a quiet knock on the door, which made Ron jump. Hermione turned around, and though she knew she was blushing madly, she figured it was safer than Ron the tomato opening the door. When she stuck her head out, it popped back in almost instantly, along with Ginny. Ron gave her a sort of bothered look, but she ignored this and spoke to the two of them as a whole, smiling.

"You know, you're going to have to tell mum at some point…" she said, almost threateningly. 

"Gin, we will, when the time is right…" Ron responded. Ginny just looked at the two of them and walked through the door. Something in his voice told Hermione that he wasn't quite sure about it, but she didn't mention it. It really didn't bother Hermione as much as it normally would have. Perhaps it was because she was thinking about what they had said at the end of the school year only three weeks before…

**_"Oh no, I never thought of mum, I bet she will be thinking of plans for our wedding… Mental, that woman, I'm telling you…"_****Ron looked so adorable when he turned pink.**

****

**_"What's so mental about that?" _**

****

**_"You mean…you would…um?" _****There he goes again!**

****

**_"When the time comes…"_**

When the time comes…

Ron tried to imagine when that time would come…

That night at dinner, Ginny kept kicking Ron under the table, trying to get him to tell Mrs. Weasley about him and Hermione. But he took the pain with barely a grimace and almost glared at the poor girl. She was only trying to help…

For some reason Ron just couldn't bring himself to tell his parents about, well, what was there to tell anyway? He loved the girl, plain and simple. In fact, almost too plain and simple. So plain and simple, in fact, that the words suddenly found themselves slipping out of his mouth like a waterfall. 

"Mum, I just thought I'd let you know that I love Hermione." 

The entire table turned to look at him, especially Hermione, who was sitting next to him. _Did he just tell his mother that he loves me? But, that's so…unlike him…_

Mrs. Weasley looked up at Ron with a smile. 

"I know sweetie, I know…" was all she would say. But he wasn't exactly concerned with her response; he was too busy looking daggers at Ginny.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ron, I promise it wasn't me!" Ginny yelled, half exasperated and half enjoying his torment. Ron had flung himself on his bed and was twiddling his thumbs madly. Harry walked into Ron's room and stood next to Ginny, a huge grin on his face. It couldn't have been more obvious…

"Thanks Harry," he said sharply. "Where's Hermione?"

"She's downstairs helping your mum. Ron, you had to tell them at some point. And look, she already knew! I told you it was obvious!"

"Well, I guess I had just wanted to tell her in a more…expressive way, instead of having my lips move like a ventiquolist." He said, seeming to have calmed down a bit. 

Harry chuckled. "Ventriloquist, Ron." Ron shrugged. 

Hermione came back upstairs just as Ginny was leaving the room. She lay down next to Ron and looked up at the ceiling with him. After a few minutes of silence, Ron spoke up about something that had been taking a hold of his brain for the past few weeks.

"Hermione…" he said softly, his voice not wanting to speak.

"Yes?" She turned onto her side to see him eye to eye. 

"You remember that conversation we had, about um…the time coming?" He barely whispered that last part, he was so nervous.

She smiled. _Could he tell I was thinking about that today? _She thought jokingly.

"Were you being serious? I mean, you actually would consider…" he trailed off anxiously. Hermione grinned.

"Are you serious? I'd be the luckiest girl alive…" and with that, she touched her lips to his, and neither of them thought about it for the rest of the night.

Please read and review! We love you all! We'll love you even more when you read and review! Tee hee hee…


	2. Manic Morning

A/N: This is Heather, the cool and clever one (not to mention crazy...hehe).Please pardon me if my chapter stinks compared to Lauren's... I think she started off my story better than I could, but that's cool...Thanks again, Lauren!!! ~partners in crime!~

Disclaimer: okay, you know the drill...as Lauren so cleverly stated, it would not be written by two peeps if it where real, not to mention it wouldn't be on fanfiction. net and we would be rich and all that... but,alas, we are not, at least I am not.....Lucky J.K. and her brilliant, rich imagination...lol...anyways, we don't own Harry Potter...yada, yada, yada....(but, it would be the *best* christmas present.. hint, hint...give me my ickle Ronnikins and I will be content...hehe....okay, on with the story.....brain's bloggy.. gotta think ..okay)

~Together at Last~

Chapter 2: Manic Morning

"Ron, wake up, c'mon...everyone is waiting..." whispered Hermione, kneeling next to Ron, beside the bed

no response...

"Ron!....I know you can hear me, get up, sleepyhead!" she whispered in his ear, and ran her fingers through his fiery red hair, she could feel him shiver slightly as she did this.

" five more minutes, I've got to write a letter to the mayor of talking tuna town..." mumbled Ron, not opening his eyes, and clearly half asleep (sorry, Lauren...I just *couldn't* resist ..hehe)

Hermione laughed out loud at this, He *must* have some interesting dreams....

"fine, desperate calls, call for desperate measures, here I come sleeping beauty" she giggled, and kissed him lightly on the lips, he grabbed her face after a few seconds and deepened the kiss.

"' morning, see you decided to join the living" teased Hermione, as the morning kiss had subsided

" mmm...Hermione, promise me something, will ya?" said Ron, his eyes still shut and yawning deeply..

Hermione looked at him curiously

"depends on the promise" she answered

Ron then smiled and looked over at her, he took her face in his hands and kissed her cheeks.

"promise me that you will always wake me up like that" he said, kissing her lips

"no problem, it seems like the only way I *can* get you to wake up, anyways.." she giggled

"well, there _are _other ways to wake me..." grinned Ron

"oh, really and what would those ways be?" Hermione asked in a skeptical sort of way

Ron kissed her lips again and then raised an eyebrow.

"haven't you figured it out by now?" he smiled that cute, lopsided grin, that made Hermione's heart race.

"should I?" she asked

"fine, I will tell you, not that you will have to use them, mind you, you hold the number one master key of all awakenings.." he smiled at her and winked.

Hermione blushed and nodded.

"second is food....."

Hermione laughed " should have known, your a bottomless pit"

"ah, but it is a Weasley trait" said Ron, knowingly

"your poor mother..."teased Hermione

"hey, she had me...but speaking of mum...that is third on my list of awakenings.."

"what?"

"mum can wake me up....no, not like that, you pervert....by yelling at me ..."

Hermione laughed.

"did you just call *me* a pervert, you jerk?" she teased

"hey, we make a perfect match" concluded Ron

Hermione playfully punched him in the arm..

"ow, that really hurt" he said sarcastically

" It wasn't suppose to hurt you dimwit, but I can hit harder if you want" she warned

Ron's eyes brightened, expectantly..

"go on, I dare you to!" he challenged

Hermione just laughed at him and kissed his forehead.

"you need to put some decent cloths on and get downstairs..." she said getting up, Ron grabbed her hand and pulled her down on the bed next to him.

"ah, so you declined my challenge, I see" he smiled down at her

"No, I am afraid that if I hit you to hard, I just might enjoy it to much and I won't be able to stop" concluded Hermione, looking up at him innocently

"right...chicken" he said and kissed her on the lips, she pulled away just long enough to say..

"If I'm a chicken, your a turkey.." they then kissed again

"gobble, gobble, gobble" said Ron, Hermione laughed.

"jerk" she said and a kiss

"wimp" the name calling and kissing went on for a few more minutes, Hermione completely forgot why she had come up in the first place.

Then , just as they embraced each other in the most passionate kiss of the morning, Ginny popped in the doorway..

"Are you two planning on coming down, or do you plan on snogging all afternoon?" she asked, smiling 

"snogging with Hermione all afternoon sounds nice" concluded Ron

Hermione, the tinge of pink in her cheeks growing brighter, got up .

"you're leaving me?" he asked with a pouty lip

Ginny rolled her eyes and Hermione laughed..

"yes, I am leaving you, I'll see you downstairs..." said Hermione

"Oh, and by the way, me and Harry found a really cool lake in the middle of the orchard...we where thinking of going swimming later, and maybe having a picnic and stuff, interested?" asked Ginny, excitedly.

"um, Ginny....you just asked me if I wanted to see 'Mione in a bathing suit...of course I want to, if you want to Hermione" he added

Hermione was taking on Ron's characteristic in the blushing department.

"sounds good...." she answered

"cool! this is going to be so much fun!" said Ginny excitedly

"yeah, because you get to see Harry in his swimming trunks, perhaps?" teased Ron

"oh, shut up Ron, honestly, and you call *me* the perv" joked Hermione

"I call it as they come" answered Ron

Ginny looked at them both and rolled her eyes again..Hermione shook her head and smirked at Ron

"see you downstairs" said Hermione

"okay" 

Hermione and Ginny both went downstairs..

Ron smiled to himself, he then reached under the mattress and took out a tiny box, he opened it and inside lay a small ring...

He decided that the time had come...

He had plans to make tonight unforgettable.

He then put the ring back under the mattress and got up, he changed and went downstairs .

He couldn't help, but think how differently his life had changed in the last few months.

Only a few months ago had he sat in the common room asking Hermione about advice on girls....boy did that turn out to be a mess...but all mistakes have a reason, if it hadn't been for him and Lavender, Hermione probably wouldn't have told him about her true feelings, and the same with him.

But now the declaration of their love for one another was evident, and Ron was sure he wanted to spend the rest of his life her, and if she wanted, to have another generation of Weasley children...

Ron laughed at the fact of them possibly being parents in the future...Never would he have dreamed of the annoying girl in 1st year that he couldn't stand was the one who kept him going forward, She was the reason he lived...even before he realised it in 4th year, he always felt something for her, he just couldn't understand what it was...He didn't belch slugs in 2nd year for nothing, he couldn't understand why it got to him so much that Draco picked on her, when he, himself, did it about ten times a day.....he understood it now.

He then snapped out of reverie and back to reality, he smelled the nice aroma of breakfast in the air and unevitably made his way to the kitchen.

'Today is going to be interesting, I can feel it' he thought as, he kissed Hermione on the top of the head and sat next to her.

A/N: okay, I know that probably wasn't as good as the first one (curse you Lauren for being such a great writer...and putting me to shame.. lol) ^_^ Anywhoozles, we would absolutely love if you reviewed, because we do this *for* the sole purpose of reviews, because who writes a story that no body reads????...so..please review

: ) ~~~~ Don't deny that face....

The review button is that thing right down there ..(see arrow)... it only takes a few seconds to review...thanks!

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	3. Ablazed Appeasement

Hey everyone! Lauren here, with your third chapter! I really hope you enjoy this one, cause I get the feeling it's not as good as the first one. (Meaning if I don't get good feedback on this one, you'd better watch out…J) Well, enjoy! And make sure you review when you're done, cause that's what keeps us going! And if you don't like this chapter (which I'm **sure** isn't true, right??) then at least you know you'll love the next one, cause it's gonna be sooooo good! So you should keep reading anyway. Alright, that's all for now! 

Disclaimer: I am both a pathological liar and delusional, so just know that, no matter how many times I claim to own Harry Potter, it isn't true!! Although, if I'm a liar, then you don't know if I really mean it, or if it's just a lie, do you? Hmm…makes ya think, don't it? 

I'm just playin, I'm only a pathological liar half of the time! 

And I'm not delusional…

But I do own Harry Potter! I'm J.K. Rowling! Really! Ask Heather, she'll tell you…what, what are you doing? No, don't do it, I didn't mean it! What are you doing with those handcuffs, I was just—

NO! Don't take me away! I was just kidding, I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER!!!!!

Chapter three

Ablazed Appeasement

After breakfast, the four of them headed back upstairs to get ready for their trip to the lake. They all seemed to be blushing, each of them consumed with the thoughts of their particular **someone** in a bathing suit. Ginny had tried her best not to make it obvious, because she really was looking forward to seeing Harry in his swim trunks…she shook her head, apparently trying to snap herself out of it.

Hermione found a bag under Ron's (messy) bed and began sticking extra clothes and towels in it. Ron watched her, and an unstoppable grin took over his face. While she wasn't looking, he slipped his hand under the mattress and pulled out the small box, sneaking it into his pocket. She looked up just as he pulled his hand out and noticed said grin. In turn, it made her grin. 

"What are you smiling about?" she asked mischievously, thinking she knew the answer. 

"Oh nothing, I'm just watching you clean up my room…housewife." He whispered that last part jokingly, thinking she wouldn't hear it, but boy did she ever…

"Excuse me, Ronald Weasley, but did you just call me 'housewife'???" she asked, pretending to be offended. Ron, as usual, was too oblivious to realize that she was joking. 

"No, I don't know what you're talking about! I would never call you that!" he said retreating, thinking she would hit him. 

But instead of hitting him, she just rolled her eyes and went back to packing. She could have told him she wasn't serious, but she decided to go along with it and act the part. He didn't fail to notice the occasional glare she threw at him over her shoulder, but he didn't notice her chuckle afterwards. 

Neither of them knew that the other was secretly imagining her as his wife…

Twenty minutes later, they made their way downstairs. After saying goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, they headed out the door and began their walk to the orchard. Ron kept glancing at Hermione to see if she was still upset about the housewife comment, and since she wouldn't even look in his direction, he took that as a yes. He stuck his hand in his pocket and fiddled with the box. _Yes, this it the **perfect**__ time to propose, when she's _**_mad_**_ at me…_he thought sarcastically. 

Hermione was still thinking about that comment, and though she hated the meaning behind it and all the societal images it brought to mind, she couldn't help but envision herself as one. Not just any housewife, but **his** housewife. And she smiled, picturing herself waiting for him to come home everyday, anxiously awaiting his return, and throwing her arms around his neck when he did. Of course, she would have to have a job of her own if she was to keep any of her dignity and self-respect, but the thought still comforted her. And then she imagined a little girl, with bushy, long red hair…She tried so hard to keep back her smile. She wanted right then to kiss him on the cheek and reveal that she hadn't really been mad at all, but something in the back of her mind reminded her that he wasn't supposed to think he could get away with these things, so she refrained. 

After fifteen minutes, they made it to the beautiful orchard, and Ron could only think about how romantic it all was…He began playing with the box again.

They continued on to the lake, and when they finally got there, they felt a thick cloud of awkwardness pass over them. They all seemed to be asking themselves the same question: How were they supposed to change? They all looked at each other uneasily, when Hermione finally pulled Ginny behind a bush, and the boys sighed, relieved. They began to change when Harry saw a look of apprehension on Ron's face, and he couldn't help but engage himself into the situation. 

"Ron, what's going on? You seem so…worried or something."

Ron shrugged, not bothering to look up. 

"It's nothing, I was just reacting to the oddness of that moment just then. That's all," he lied. 

Harry didn't think too much of it; he threw his shoes in the direction of the bag and walked over to the edge of the lake, looking in. 

Ron set his pants down on the ground gently, careful not to let the box slip out of the pocket. He was in the middle of pulling his shirt off over his head when he heard light footsteps from behind. Just when he turned around, he felt someone jump on him, knocking him to the ground.

"'Mione!" he shouted, his mouth full of leaves. She began giggling hysterically and took off as fast as she could towards the water. As soon as he spit out his mouthful of dirt (and got his shirt off), he ran after her.

"Oh no you don't!!"

Before she was able to jump in, he swept her off the ground and threw her high into the air, all the while Hermione screaming "ROOOOON!" until she hit the water with a splash. 

Ron laughed at his victory, looking up at the sky and seeing the sun at its last glorious moment. But while he was admiring the sky, he felt a tug at his legs, and suddenly he was falling head first into the water. 

Ginny, meanwhile, had made her way out to Harry to see what was going on. Harry looked over toward her when he heard a rustling noise and felt his eyes widen a little at the sight before his eyes. But he stuck them back in quickly as she took a stand next to him. 

"What the--"she began, but Harry shushed her, and she watched them silently. They sat down to watch as the sun slowly began to set. Ron pulled Hermione to the surface to give her a rewarding kiss as the sun cast one last gleam of light on the lake, and the thought of the ring in his pants pocket was swimming around in the back of his mind, ever present…


	4. Enlightening Engagements

A/N : This is Heather, by the way, if ya haven't already spotted the pattern....Hope you like the chappie, cuz I know it's gonna be fun to write, Hope you all are enjoying the story thus far!!!!

Disclaimer: How many times do we have to say it?....we don't, never will, never have owned Harry Potter, as much as we all wish we did ^_^ but those *are* the sad facts , my friend, and facts always outweigh flights of fantasy...unfortunately...

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 4 : Enlightening Engagements

Ron kept the thought of the ring in his head all day, as the hours passed, he felt those butterflies in his stomach becoming ferocious. Even though he knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Hermione, he just couldn't help, but think if it was to early to propose ... she said she would if the time came, but what did she mean by that? She seemed to get mad at him mentioning her as a housewife, Ron shrugged these thoughts off. He *was* going to ask her tonight, better to do it sooner than later.

The sun was getting low in the sky and they had fun having water fights, and Ron was marveled as he saw Hermione in a bathing suit, he had never saw her wear such tight cloths that showed off every curve, which was a shame to Ron because he thought she had a nice body.

Hermione giggled as she began to splash Ron repeatedly, until she fell back and came back up ..her hair completely drenched, she started to splash him again, but Ron had made his way over to her and grabbed both of her hands before she could start in.

"You are a seriously evil witch, Hermione ....just splashing innocent bystanders.." teased Ron, as he took both of her struggling hands in one and splashed her with the other.

"you are very far from innocent.." she giggled, struggling against his grip

"I beg to differ, you wouldn't be trying to escape my hold now would you, Miss Granger?" asked Ron, with a smirk.

"what do you think?" asked Hermione and stuck out her tongue at him

" I think you are losing a pointless battle, you can't escape me" he gave her an mischievous, lopsided grin

"who said it was a battle?" asked Hermione

She kissed his lips.

"I know what you're doing, it isn't working missy...I will not give into your entrancing kisses...." said Ron, playfully 

"oh really?....then I guess I have no hope " she sighed, playing along

"there is hope.....maybe a bigger kiss is able to change my mind?" he suggested, arching an eyebrow

"I dunno...." sighed Hermione

Ron then kissed her, and this time it was more passionate, as he let go of her hands and they wrapped around his neck and his around her waist, with the setting sun and the surrounding water, it was perfect Ron thought to himself.

Meanwhile Harry and Ginny sat on the bank, under a blossoming apple tree. They where cuddled and watching the sunset together, they both spotted Ron and Hermione taking a break from their water fight to share a passionate kiss.

Harry and Ginny then looked at each other and decided to do the same.

Harry gave a slight shiver as the night air hit his wet flesh.... He went over to the pile of cloths and grabbed his pants.

"um, Harry...those aren't your pants" giggled Ginny

"oh, right...its dark, I didn't see..." he replied

He was about to drop them and get his own, when he felt the lump in the front pocket, his curiousity getting the better of him, he pulled it out and opened it and saw the ring....he let out a silent gasp of surprise, realizing that Ron was going to propose to Hermione.

Ginny had walked over and looked at him curiously.

"what is it?" she asked

"um, well, I think that Ron is going to, well, propose to Hermione tonight" answered Harry

Ginny looked at him with wide eyes, and began excitedly.

"Really?!... how do you know?!.. oh, that is just the sweetest thing!"

"well, I don't know for sure...but look at this, I found it in his pocket" he then showed the ring o Ginny, and she gave almost the same gasp of surprise as Harry did the moment before.

"well, do you think we should like leave early or something so he can have a chance?" asked Ginny

"I think so, but lets not tell him about seeing the ring" said Harry

Ginny nodded and grinned.

Harry then grabbed his pants and put them on, and went to sit back down next to Ginny.

After a few minutes, Hermione and Ron came back to shore and sat down by Harry and Ginny.

Ron put on his pants.

"you two looked like you had fun" said Harry

"ugh...I hate it when my hair gets wet. .it gets ten times as frizzy" said Hemione, trying to comb through her hair with her fingers.

Ron rubbed a hand over her back in a comforting way.

"Don't worry, love, I think it makes your look sexy" said Ron

Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"Then you have really bad eyesight" she replied

"nope, its perfectly normal" he gave her another famous Ron Weasley grin..(a/n the best kind, if I say so myself..hehe..)

Ginny and Harry exchanged glances.

"well, Harry, I think I am going to walk back.. do you want to come with me?" asked Ginny suddenly

"yeah, sure, lets go" said Harry and they both got up and began to make their way back to the burrow, 

Hermione and Ron watched them as they left.

"maybe we should get going also" said Hermione

" not yet, I want to spend some time with you, away from the burrow and my intrusive family" laughed Ron

"okay then" smiled Hermione and wrapped herself in the blanket they brought and cuddled up to Ron.

"you know I love you, right?...." asked Ron

"well, I certainly hope you love me, because I love you." answered Hermione

"well, do you ever think of us maybe having a future with this relationship?" asked Ron, nervously

"If I didn't think this relationship was worthwhile I wouldn't be in it, would I?" answered Hermione

"well, it's just that...you got so upset over what I said earlier with the whole housewife thing...I just thought..."began Ron

"oh, Ron...I was only joking, I was teasing you, actually, I hope that in the future I will...well, I will actually be your..." her voice trailed off

"I hope that, too" said Ron

she kissed his lips and pulled herself closer to him...laying her head on his chest ,as they sat up against the huge apple tree.

Ron reached inside his pocket, pulling the small box out and sitting it beside him....He was feeling nervous, This was a serious step in their relationship and he wanted the moment to be perfect.

"I am so glad we got together, I wish we could have sooner.." said Ron, after a moment of silence..

"me too, I think it's funny that we both liked each other and never knew it, I can't believe that Ginny and Harry dated before us" laughed Hemione

"yeah, that's kinda sad" admitted Ron

"well, It's kind of late, maybe we should be getting back..." said Hermione, looking up at him.

"not yet....I-I got to ask you something..." He started, his throat going very dry

"okay, what is it?" asked Hermione

Ron then picked up the small box and opened it, he took the ring out and held Hermione's hand in his.

Hermione let out a gasp of surprise when she saw the ring, she realized what Ron was about to do...she looked up at him,her eyes wide with anticipation.

"um, Hermione, I guess the time has come, and I hope you'll say yes, because I really want to spend the rest of my life with you, I love you so much, I always have..... Hermione Granger, will you marry me?" He asked

at this, Hermione's eyes swelled with tears...

she then smiled and nodded..

"yes, yes!!! of course, I love you too, Ronald Weasley!" she said and giggled through her happy tears..

Ron looked relieved and happy...he let out a laugh of relief and slipped the ring onto her finger..

she then hugged him tightly and began kissing his face excitedly, before he gave her one long passionate kiss in return..

"we should get back...." he said after a while..

" I suppose so..." answered Hermione, touching and admiring the ring on her finger...

"you know what this means,right?" asked Ron

"that my name will be Hermione Weasley and I'll be eternally yours?" answered Hermione

"besides that..." said Ron, he liked the sound of that...Hermione Weasley

"what?"

"we will have to tell our parents and family" said Ron

"what fun" said Hermione,sarcastically

Ron put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close as they walked back to the burrow...

a/n: that's the end my friend, hoped you enjoyed that.....well, now you know what you have to do!!! Review!!!!...hehe.. that rhymed, kewl....


	5. Bursting Bubbles

Hey all! Lauren here, with good ol' chapter five. I have much more confidence in this chapter for some reason, probably because I added a little humor to this one. I love me some Fred and George, don't you? Okay, well, enjoy! And make sure you review afterwards! Pwease? Ah, that's how we do it…

Oh, and Allie, this story starts a couple of weeks after the end 7th year…just so you know!

You faithful co-author,

Lauren

Disclaimer: do you have to keep rubbing it in? Isn't once enough?? I already know that I don't own Harry Potter, okay, so you don't have to go and rub it in!!! Geez! *sobs* I'm sorry, it's just—so hard—to deal with…

Chapter five

Bursting Bubbles

As Ron and Hermione, newly engaged, approached the door of the burrow, and Ron leaned in for another kiss, Hermione saw two excited faces move away from the window. Before she could think too much of it, she was embraced in what had to be one of the most wonderful kisses she had ever received from him. After a few moments of bliss, she pulled away, remembering the faces in the window. 

"Ron, you wouldn't happen to know anything about the two heads I saw in the window just then, would you?" she asked playfully. 

Ron looked up at the window, knowing that they still wouldn't be there, but he was naturally inclined. 

"No, I wouldn't. Who was it?" he asked, honestly confused. He hadn't known about Harry and Ginny seeing the ring.

"Oh, just a couple of nosy prats, that's all," she said jokingly. She knew it had been them, but since Ron hadn't…

Ron went on about how Fred and George had **always** been nosy prats (for he was successfully led to believe that it was Fred and George in the window…clever Hermione) even after they had walked inside and headed upstairs. When they reached Ron's room, Hermione was forced to stick a sock in his mouth (literally) because he really was going to wake someone. Ron finally heeded her and took out the sock silently. He took off his shoes and, too lazy to change, and far too happy, he simply lay down in his bed and watched Hermione unpack the bag. Oddly enough, instead of telling her to stop unpacking, he got up and helped her. She laid down on his bed and watched the ceiling, another habit she had picked up from Ron, and Ron laid next to her. He pulled her close to him, and she stretched her arm out above them. Ron chuckled as she proceeded to play with the ring that fit so beautifully on her finger; she had the hugest grin on her face, and this made Ron so unbelievably happy. After admiring the ring once more, Hermione took her outreached arm and wrapped it around Ron, and they lay there, watching the ceiling, and envisioning the future.

Harry and Ginny had gone unnoticed on the couch, and they had stayed their until Hermione had led Ron and his big mouth upstairs. Harry was holding Ginny closely, and she couldn't stop talking about how happy she was for them. (a/n: perhaps nonstop chattering is another Weasley trait?) Harry was practically silent; he was trying to get his mind to absorb the fact that his two best friends were actually getting married… he couldn't say he didn't expect it, he had been teasing them about it for the past five years, but now that it was actually happening, it was, well, a bit strange really. He didn't voice these thoughts to Ginny; he thought she may take it the wrong way. Harry was, of course, very happy for them. But it would take a while for it to seem normal. 

The next morning, Harry woke up next to Ginny, still on the couch. Ginny was still sound asleep, so he quietly slipped out from under her and decided to head upstairs to see if Ron and Hermione were awake yet. He waited outside the door and listened before he knocked; he didn't want to disturb anything. But what he heard told him they were very much awake indeed, and it wasn't just them in there. 

"Ron, we didn't do anything! Honestly, we were asleep the whole time!" That was unmistakably George. _What did they do?_ Harry wondered.

"I didn't say you did anything! Sheesh, I was just wondering why you were watching us out the window, that's all," Ron said besieged. 

"But we **weren't**, so I don't know what you're talking about!" Fred joined. 

Hermione felt bad, she was sitting in the corner quietly. She didn't mean for Ron to approach them about it, but now she couldn't admit what she had done, Ron would probably get upset about fighting with them over nothing. Luckily for her, Harry knocked on the door and came in silently, thinking he should explain the situation. 

"Ron, it was me and Ginny at the window last night, not them. We were waiting to see if you had done it." Harry said, not realizing what exactly he had said. All of Fred, George, Hermione and Ron looked at him, bewildered. Half of them wondered what exactly he had meant by that, while the other half wondered how he had known…

Harry looked back at them sheepishly. _Now what am I supposed to do? _he thought panicked. He looked at Ron, who was absolutely perplexed, and then at Fred, who had a mischievous grin on his face. 

"Done what?" he asked with curious inquiry.

Ron looked at Hermione, who in return gave him a look that said **_might as well…_**

"Well, Fred, George, I'm not sure how Harry knew, but…Hermione and I are engaged…" he said, unsure of their reaction. Though he had the feeling teasing would be involved.

Fred looked at George with wide eyes. They both simultaneously looked from Ron to Hermione, to Harry, and back to Ron…

"Engaged? Really! Well, that's just fantastic! That's great!" cheered Fred. _What the-_ Ron thought, confused. 

"Well George, looks like our ickle Ronnie is all grown up! What are we gonna do now? We've only got Ginny left, and it seems like that won't last long, eh Harry?" he teased. _Ah, **there's**__ what I was waiting for…_Ron thought it somewhat twisted that he found Fred and George's teasing comforting.

"Hermione, welcome to the family!" said George, patting her on the back. "God bless you…well, looks like we've got some news to spread, eh Fred?" 

"No, actually, I think it'd be better if me and 'Mione did it…" Ron said, thinking that he would much rather not have to tell the rest of his family.

"Alright then, good luck!" they cried as they left the room and headed downstairs. Harry tried to sneak out as well, but Ron was at least quick enough to know sneakiness when he saw it.

"Harry, uh, how exactly did you know?" he asked. 

"Well, we weren't going to tell you, but last night, I thought your pants were mine, and uh, the box uh, fell out of the pocket when I picked them up…" he lied. He couldn't tell Ron he went in his pocket.

"Oh, well, alright then," Ron said passively. Harry nodded, and after a brief pause, made his way down the stairs. 

Ron looked at Hermione. 

"Well, that's four down, five to go…" he sighed. 

"And that's only **your** family…" Hermione answered.


	6. Astounding Anouncements

A/N: Okay, here goes my chapter (this is Heather, by the way..)...Lauren always does such great chapters and makes me look like an amateur... lol...but I hope you enjoy it all the same!!!!

Disclaimer: Would you believe me if I told you that I did own Harry Potter and co.?.....nah, didn't think you would....so, I guess I will tell you that I don't , even though you already knew that.

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 6 : Astounding Anouncements

Ron took Hermione in his arms and kissed the top of her head....clasping both of her hands in his and touching the ring on her finger.

"It feels weird, doesn't it?" asked Hermione, looking up at him, smiling

"what?" asked Ron

"Us.....Being together, after so long of just being friends.... its just so great.....its almost weird" answered Hermione, smiling up at him.

"weird wouldn't be the word I'd describe it as... great, exillarating, breathetaking, ironic and a fantasy-come-true would be how I'd describe it " said Ron

"oh, now your one with the words, make me look dumb, will you.." she said rolling her eyes at him

"your far from dumb, 'Mione" replied Ron

"I like that name....Last year in the common room I said I didn't, but I love it..." said Hermione, quickly

Ron grinned at her.

"I like it because your the only one that called me by that, it made me feel special, like you was calling me yours... " said Hermione, kissing his lips.

"I called you that because it made me feel like you where mine, I never thought you would be, though...honestly, when 7th year came, I was positive that I'd lose you forever... so instead of dealing with that I decided to get a girlfriend to ease the pain..." said Ron

"why didn't you just ask me to be your girlfriend ?..I thought you where going to when you asked me about asking out a girl that annoyed you for 7 years.... I remembered how much I cried that night when I saw you two kissing...." said Hermione, tears coming to her eyes at the thought.

"well, I didn't think you returned my feelings..." said Ron

"and you thought Lavender did?" asked Hermione, skeptically

"no, but she would be a whole lot easier to ask, I didn't want you to get all mad and smack me or something, besides, you could have asked me.." said Ron

"I did.." smiled Hermione, with a giggle

"oh, that's right..." laughed Ron.. "but I asked you to marry me, so where even"

" I can't believe Harry and Ginny know.." said Hermione

"well, at least it saved us from having to tell them...why didn't you tell me about them in the window, I looked like a prat with Fred and George.. for once they where innocent" laughed Ron

"at least they didn't pick on you about it... " said Hermione, with a slight nervous laugh

"give it time, it's still morning... they won't let it go with out saying or doing something I'll regret" said Ron, kissing Hermione on the forehead.

" well, lets get down there, The sooner we get it done, the better" said Hermione

"so true..." said Ron 

They both made their way, hand-in-hand downstairs .....

~~~~

"Here comes the happy couple" Ron heard Ginny say, He turned and saw Harry and Ginny sitting on the sofa.

"Oh, hi.." said Hermione, turning around as Ron stopped 

Ginny then hopped up and ran over, excitedly

she quickly hugged Ron and Hermione..

"I am so happy you two are getting married, it's so great! I'm gonna have a sister-in-law! can I see your ring?!" she asked in a rush.

Hermione nodded and grinned, holding her hand out so Ginny could see the ring...Ginny squealed with excitement.

Hermione laughed and her face went red from all the attention she was recieving.

"so, when will I be an aunt?" asked Ginny, an eyebrow raised

Hermione's eyes went wide, she was obviously not expecting that question... she exchanged glances with Ron, who shrugged, obviously thinking the same thing she had been.

"um, we actually haven't even discussed that..." said Hermione, sheepishly, her and Ron never discussed having children.

"I didn't mean to embarrass you, I just think it'd be really cool to be an aunt really soon is all" hinted Ginny.

Ron rolled his eyes.. "Gin, I am not gonna knock Hermione up just so you can feel the joys of being an aunt"

"I didn't mean it like that, you git!" retorted Ginny

Harry laughed and Hermione looked mortified.

"lets go eat breakfast, shall we?" asked Hermione, trying to cover up the awkward silence.

They all nodded and made their way to the Weasley kitchen and sat down around the dining table.

After a few minutes Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came to join them...

" aren't we all just a chatty bunch this morning?" she commented after a few minutes of silence.

"we are just all a bit tired from yesterday.." said Ron, after exchanging glances with everyone else that knew about the proposal.

"I bet you are" said Fred

Ron sent him a glare, telling his mum would take alot of courage.

Hermione gave him an understanding gaze.

"so, is anyone going to tell me what everyone is hiding?" asked Mrs. Weasley after a few minutes silence

"we aren't hiding anything mum" said George, Ron wished he hadn't said anything, because he wasn't good at lying.

"well, that confirms it..." said Mrs. Weasley, eyeing everyone suspiciously

everyone inevitably looked at Ron and Hermione with sympathetic stares.

and Mrs. Weasley followed their stares.

" What did you do?" she asked Ron

Everyone laughed as they saw Ron squirm nervously under her stare...

"I-I-I....nothing, I didn't do anything" he said, looking at his plate

"I know you did something, and it involves Hermione there" said Mrs.Weasley

Hermione flinched as her name was mentioned.

"you didn't break up?" she asked, seriously

"no, mum.... I don't plan on doing that for a while ...I guess you can say we are bonded together now" he replied, his face going red.

there was a silence, then Mrs. Weasley began to speak again.

"so.. you're telling me that...you and Hermione are going to..." she started, quietly

"I would have told you sooner, but as you are my parents and all..." started Ron

Mrs.Weasley spoke in a would-be-calm voice..and turned to Hermione..

"why didn't you tell me,dear?" she asked

"well, I didn't find out until yesterday, I mean we have been planning on it...but we where waiting for the right time, and I guess we did." explained Hermione

"Well, I guess it's to late to turn back now, at least your not at school...but honestly, having a baby before marriage?...Ron,I thought we raised you better than that" said Mrs. Weasley.

at this, Ron and Hermione's eyes went wide with embarrassed shock...everyone else laughed.

"I don't think it is very funny" scolded Mrs.Weasley

"mum, Hermione *isn't * pregnant.." said Ron, taken aback 

"oh, sorry dear.... then what is it?" she asked

"oh, since your too chicken to say anything, I am" said Ginny..

"No you won't!" said Ron

"'won't what' is what I'd like to know" interjected Mrs.Weasley

" fine, Hermione and I are engaged..." said Ron,in a rush

Mrs. Weasley had pretty much the same reaction Ginny had that morning, with the squeals of excitement and hugging...

after dinner, Mr.Weasley took Ron for a manly chat, Ron wording the words 'help me' as he was pulled out of sight.

Hermione was left with Mrs.Weasley...

'this should be fun' she thought sarcastically.

A/N: hope you like that chappie..it was fun to write....well, you know what to do!...please review!!! Thanks!!!! ^_^


	7. Crucial Considerations

A/N: hey all, Lauren here! I hope you all like this as much as I liked writing it…here's chapter seven for ya! Enjoy! And thanks to all of you who have read and reviewed our story, it means a lot to us! Please continue to do so! Or you may just see our evil sides…I know, you'd never expect it, would you??

Disclaimer: It'd take me a LOT longer to update this chapter if I were J.K., so this is the one instance where I'm glad not to be her. Though I love her! And no, I don't own Harry Potter, sadly enough…

Chapter seven

Crucial Considerations

"Now dear, you **do **understand what all this means, don't you?" said Mrs. Weasley sweetly. _Wait, what? What _**_what_**_ means?? _Hermione thought. 

"We have a wedding to plan! This is going to be very exciting! Did you two set a date yet??" Mrs. Weasley was simply gushing about this whole thing, and Hermione was relieved, she thought she was in for one of **those **talks. Speaking of, she wondered what Ron was talking about with Mr. Weasley…

"Actually no, we haven't talked about that yet, he only proposed last night, so, well, we haven't really gotten there yet."

"Oh, only last night! That is so sweet, I bet it was awfully romantic…" Mrs. Weasly trailed off, apparently getting lost in her own little romantic daydream… 

Hermioen chuckled, to herself of course. She loved Mrs. Weasley like a second mother…_Oh wait, that's right, she **is **__going to be my mother-in-law…_

Meanwhile…

"Now son, getting married is a big responsibility, not something to be taken lightly…"

Ron rolled his eyes as Mr. Weasley turned around to close the door. Like he was planning to take this lightly. Psh!

"Dad, I know, I plan to-"

"Now son, I know you love her very much, I've always known, so I don't doubt for one second that you'll be with each other for always, but there are some things you have to be prepared for…" 

_Oh god, here it comes…_

"Well, let's start with babies, shall we?" Mr. Weasley said enthusiastically. Ron began to feel faint.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

For the next forty minutes, Ron was lectured about the birds and the bees, the flowers and the trees, and even penguins (Ron learned at least one thing valuable from the lesson: penguins find one mate that they mate with for life. Ron thought that was cute; of course, he didn't tell **anybody **that…) When he walked out of his room, followed by Mr. Weasley, he had a look of utmost disdain engrained into his face. Hermione and Mrs. Weasley had had a rather pleasant talk about her and Ron living together and getting jobs and whatnot. Hermione thought that maybe Ron would have done better to have been a part of their conversation, but she couldn't help but be amused by the look on his face. Ron sat down next to Hermione and rested his head on her shoulder, whispering "**Oh my Merlin, Hermione…next time he leads me away like that, make sure to shoot me before he gets too far…** Mr. Weasley passed by the Mrs., giving her a smile that could have only meant 'success!' and walked into the kitchen. _Well, looks like he scared Ron out of having children…_ she thought, smiling back. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Hermione, the man is **insane**!!! I swear, you'd think he **hated **children!!! Like he despised them or something!! Well then again, I guess I would too if I had seven of 'em…" 

Ron was laying on his bed like a patient in a therapist's office, with Hermione sitting thoughtfully in a chair next to him. Ron was about to explain the penguin story when there was a knock on the door. Hermione, realizing that Ron was in no state to stand up, let alone answer his door civilly, got up to do it herself. When she opened the door, she found Percy looking quite studious, as usual. But Hermione noticed that lately he had become less stern, he had loosened up some. This relieved her, for she knew what it was like to be uptight all the time, and it wasn't really good for you. At least from her experience. 

"Hi Percy, what brings you here?" Hermione asked with a laugh, as it was hardly usual to find Percy at Ron's door, of all others. 

"Hello Hermione, how are you? Well, I came to ask Ron something, if I'm not disturbing anything…" he answered in a professional manner, obviously missing the joke. Hermione opened the door wider for him to enter, and he sat in the chair she had been sitting in moments before, so she sat on the bed next to Ron.

Ron sit up slightly, feeling a bit disturbed by Percy's sudden presence, as he had been in such a revealing mode before he came. But he was polite all the same.

"Pers, what do you want?" Okay, maybe not as polite as he could have been, but he was at least trying. 

"Well, I was contacted by an important man in my department the other day, and he says he's looking for me to recruit some new people into the office…I was wondering if you were interested in a job, you know, since you're out of school and everything, and you'll probably want to be making some money of your own…" He looked back and forth between the two like a salesman, obliviously anticipating an answer. Ron had never seen Percy wanting to please one of his own siblings before, but he guessed it was a good change. He exchanged looks with Hermione, asking with his eyes what she thought.

"Percy, would you mind excusing us for a moment?" she asked kindly.

As soon as he left the room, Hermione turned to Ron with excitement in her eyes.

"Ron, maybe you don't want to do it, and I'd understand if you didn't want that job in particular, but he's brought up a good point, we're both going to have to get jobs at some point, because I assume we're not going to be living here when we get married…"

Ron looked at her understandingly, and he nodded his head. He really wouldn't mind working for the ministry anyway, it didn't sound too horrible, although he knew the hours could be long.

"Sure, why not? You're right, as always," he said teasingly. Hermione nudged him playfully and went over to the door to let Percy in. 

"Sure Percy, I'll take the job," he said determinedly. Percy smiled a smile of accomplishment and shook his hand professionally. Ron rolled his eyes. 

"I'll see you later to tell you all about it, right now I've got to make a few phone calls." 

As he was about head downstairs, Hermione cleared her throat loud enough for Ron to notice, and when he looked at her she nodded her head towards Percy's retreating form. He sighed resignedly. 

"Hey Pers…"

He turned around.

"Yes?" 

"Hermione and I are getting married," he said matter-of-factly.

Silence.

Ron was waiting for a response, but found none. He stood up to follow him and see where he had gone to, but when he reached the stairs…

"Ah, bloody hell, he fainted…"


	8. Picky Parents

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, but you know...we always would love more ^_^ ...well, I hope you like my chapter!!! Here we go...

Disclaimer: I love the Harry Potter characters...namely Ron... but I, unfortunately don't own them....

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 8:Picky Parents

"oh my goodness!.. is he okay?!" asked Hermione, rushing out to look at Percy.

Ron was to busy laughing to answer.

"Ron, it's not funny, he could be hurt" said Hermione, sternly and rushing out to look at him.

"He's okay ...but I didn't expect that reaction....bloody hell, he fainted!" said Ron, laughing 

Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron, and knelt beside Percy, who was still on the floor unconscious.

"Percy, are you okay?...wake up please..." said Hermione, gently shaking him.

after a minute or so, Percy finally came around.He sat up and rubbed his head, he looked around him curiously.

"are you okay?..you had a pretty good fall" said Ron, trying his best not to laugh

he nodded and laughed ..

"what's funny?" asked Hermione

"I just had the funniest dream....that you and my brother where engaged, but that is ludicrous..." he said

Ron looked furious for a second, but Hermione gave him a stern look.

"It wasn't a dream, we _are_ engaged " said Ron

"oh...well...congratulations" said Percy, a weird expression on his face, almost like he was waiting on them to tell him it was a joke.

"thank you" said Hermione

His expression then turned to shock..he knew Hermione wouldn't have gone along with the joke..

"wow...you are..I mean. when?...does anyone else know?" he asked in a rush

"the whole family, well, besides Bill and Charlie..really, you should come down for breakfast ...you really missed a show when mum found out" laughed Ron

"I think you need some air" said Hermione, in a motherly sort of way.

"yeah...I think your right" he said with a dazed expression on his face...he then got up and walked away.

"well, that went well.." said Ron, sarcastically

"just a warning, but that is nothing compared to how my dad will react" said Hermione,seriously

"I doubt it will be any worse than my parents reaction.." said Ron

"um, I very much doubt that...I am their only child, they are very protective of me....they had my future planned at 5...well, that kind of changed with Hogwarts and such...but they still want me to get a job and all that...according to them I don't have time for a marriage and extra things like that..." said Hermione

"your joking right?.... " said Ron

"wished I was.... why do you think I always kept up on my grades and stuff....it was all a part of their 'big plans' for me...they are both dentists and went to college and everything, and I know they just want me to succeed...but sometimes they can be a bit overbearing....I dunno if you should come along when I tell them" said Hermione

"Hermione, I am coming with you to tell them....if they don't like it, well, they will just have to get use to it, because I am not going anywhere" said Ron

"well, don't say I didn't warn you.." said Hermione, nervously

"when do you want to tell them?" asked Ron

"um, well, are you doing anything today?" asked Hermione

"does it look like it?...why are you wanting to visit them today?" asked Ron

"well, yeah....maybe we could stay there for a few days, as well? I don't think I am going to tell them as soon as I get there, it will take a while for me to get the courage to tell them" said Hermione

"that sounds great, so I guess I'll tell mum and dad that we will be gone for a few days....Hermione, should we go ahead and bring your stuff here when we leave? I think we need to find a new place to live...we can stay here until we do....since, its already in the wizarding world...we can just keep your stuff here until we do find a place.." said Ron

"that sounds good, yeah, we will bring my stuff back with us,Merlin knows that I won't be wanting to go back there after I tell them.." said Hermione, anxiously.

"well, then lets get some stuff packed, I'm going to tell mum and dad...then when we got everything we can just apparate there" said Ron, kissing Hermione on the forehead and heading downstairs...

Hermione gave a gulp

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After they had gotten a few days worth of cloths, they decided to apparate to the Grangers, Hermione going first, Ron followed.

When they had both arrived, Hermione looked as scared as ever...she held his hand tightly.

Ron looked around, he had never been to Hermione's house before, it was very nice, not at all like the burrow, It looked as if the Grangers where very much perfectionists.

"well, I suppose they are in the living room" concluded Hermione, to nervous to move, they where standing in the kitchen.

"well, I think you should go talk to them" said Ron, a lopsided grin forming on his face

Hermione couldn't help, but smile back and feel a bit more courageous.

Ron followed Hermione to the living room, where she found Mr.and Mrs. Granger, they looked up as she entered and looked curiously over at Ron, they both got up and went over to hug Hermione, when they pulled back, they gave another curious glance at Ron.

"and, who are you?" asked Mr. Granger, he arched an eyebrow

"oh, I am Ron Weasley" said Ron politely and extending a hand for handshake.but he didn't take it

"and, why exactly are you here with my daughter?" he asked coldly

"daddy, he's my um, friend... you know him, I go to his house every summer...you met his parents before, rememeber, when I was 12?" asked Hermione, trying desperately for her dad to stop looking daggers at Ron.

" friend, huh?.. you remember that boy, if I find out that you have so much as made a move on my little princess, well, they will have to come to me to recieve dental records to identify your body" said Mr. Granger

Ron gave a wide eyed stare at Hermione, who gave him an I-Told-you -so look

"Don't worry, Mr.Granger...I would never do anything do anything to hurt her" answered Ron

"I know how boys your age work with your raging hormones, well, my daughter is alot smarter than that.."he warned once again.

Hermione gave her mum and dad pleading looks, her mum returned it, but her dad still wanted to get his point across.

"your dad is the one who got into that fight with that guy with the blonde hair?" he asked, Ron looked relieved to hear the subject change

"er- yeah.." said Ron

"well, I hope you don't have his temper, if I hear of you ever laying a hand on my daughter-" he started

" daddy!...Ron is the sweetest boy I ever knew, he would never ever hit me...now please, stop with the speech, if you want I can just leave" said Hermione, finally ,seeing the shocked look on Ron's face and knowing her dad wouldn't stop unless she said something.

"of course I don't want you to leave,dear..." he said with a smile and grudgily shook Ron's hand..

He then left the room

Hermione's mum then spoke to Ron

" sorry he is and always has been very protective of Hermione's welfare.....just ignore his additude, he'll come around" she said, trying to comfort Ron, but in a doubtful voice...

"come on, Ron, lets go outside....let things calm down a bit" said Hermione

She took him to her backyard, it was beautiful, with all kinds of flowers and plants everywhere.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" she asked, sitting down on a bench, Ron sat beside her..

"sure is....Hermione you did warn me, that was awful, I would never hurt you, you know that, right?" 

"I know Ron, my dad is a loon sometimes...." said Hermione, giving him a hopeful smile.

"this is going to be living hell the next few days, but your worth it" said Ron

"let's just hope you make it out alive after the next few days" teased Hermione

a/n: hope you liked that, please review!!!!


	9. Farewell Fiasco

Hey guys! Lauren here with chapter nine. And boy, it's a long one, sorry! I admit, I got a tad carried away. But boy was it fun to write. Anyway, hope you all enjoy this one! And make sure to review afterwards! Love ya all!

Lauren

Disclaimer: look, I know that this chapter took me a while to write, but come on, stop comparing me to J.K….I'll write faster next time! Besides, I don't own Harry Potter, so it's not like I'm getting paid to take my time here…

Chapter nine

Farewell Fiasco

That night, Hermione said good night to Ron and watched him head toward the guest bedroom, sighing heavily. _This is insane…although I can't say I didn't expect it… _She turned around and headed to her own room. Ever since she had started at Hogwarts, she had always found that returning to her room during the summer never held the same comfort it had before. It just wasn't as, well, magical as Hogwarts. But still, she sat on her bed, got under the covers, and began to read the book that sat on her nightstand. After awhile she got extremely bored and, deciding that her parents were asleep, quietly got up and snuck over to the guest bedroom. She opened the door slowly to ensure it didn't creak, and slid inside, closing it just as carefully. She snuck over to Ron's bed and saw that he was asleep too, so she pulled back the covers and lay next to him. Just as she was about to snuggle next to him and fall asleep, Ron stirred and turned over. 

"Mione? Wha-what are you doin here?" he asked sleepily.

"Shh…it's okay, I just came to visit you. Do you mind if I sleep here next to you?" she asked sweetly.

"But what about your parents! They'd murder me! If they knew avada kedavra…I'd be in serious trouble…"he whispered, his eyes growing large at the thought.

"Ron, it's okay, don't worry about it, they won't find me in here. They'll probably be leaving in the morning and they won't even think about it. And if you're that worried, I'll make to sure to wake up early and sneak back to my bed, alright?" she said, and the tone in her voice told Ron he had no option but to say yes. Ron nodded and snuggled next to her. Within a few minutes, they were both asleep. 

The next morning…

"HERMIONE GRANGER!!! What in god's name are you doing???? Hermione, that better not be you I see in that bed…" 

A very angered Mr. Granger stormed over to Ron's bed and yanked back the blankets, and lo and behold, Hermione was indeed in bed next to Ron, sleeping peacefully. Well, she had been, until now.

"Dad?" she asked blearily. 

"I gave you separate rooms for a **reason** you know!!!" he bellowed. 

"Daddy, wait, before you wake Ron up, let's go in the hallway, please," she reasoned.

"I don't know why **I** should be concerned for **his** well-being, but fine, we'll go in the hallway."

In the hallway…

"Hermione, dare I ask why I found you in bed with, with **him** this morning? What is going on?? Did he touch you? ::gasp:: Oh my, did he…" Mr. Granger began to feel faint. 

Luckily (or maybe not), Mrs. Granger was drawn into the hallway by all the noise and held Mr. Granger up.

"What is going on here?" she asked, but received no answer or acknowledgement.

"DAD! No! we did **nothing** of the sort! And he has a name you know, Ron! His name is Ron! Not 'him', all right! And there is nothing to be concerned with, I merely slept **next** to him!"

"Hermione, what is a boy like him, er, Ron, doing in my house? You know how I feel about people of that sort…" he said, with a grimace spreading over his face. Hermione knew he was referring to his social status.

As all of this was happening, Mrs. Granger looked back and forth between the two, and she was beginning to see what was really going on…

"He's here because I'M MARRYING HIM!!!! We came here to TELL you this! That's why we're here! I didn't want to tell you because I knew that something like this would happen, and look, it already is, and before I even told you! And so you know, I love him very, **very** much, and I don't care if he's rich or poor, if he's a wizard or a muggle, because I LOVE him! Can't you understand that??" she finished with a heaving sigh. 

With that, Mr. Granger was frozen, a mix of anger and shock taking over his face. It was pretty interesting, since his face was sort of red and pale at the same time, like he'd been tie-dyed. Mrs. Granger, who was still holding him up, gave a relieved sigh and smiled at Hermione. _'it's okay dear,_' she mouthed. 

There were a few moments of silence, then…

"and what makes you think that I'll let you marry him??" he whispered angrily. 

"Do you think that you have any say in this matter? I'm marrying him whether you like it or not! I could have just not told you, but I thought it would have been nice to see my parents at my wedding. I guess I was wrong…" she said resentfully. 

Mrs. Granger gave her a sympathetic look, and decided to speak up. 

"Hermione, I'm very happy for you. I think Ron is a very nice boy, and I'm sure you'll be very happy together," she said proudly, a tear forming behind her eye.

"I've decided that I'm not letting you leave this house. There is no way in hell you're marrying that boy," he said calmly.

At this point, Ron joined them in the hallway.

"Hermione, what's going on?" he asked, but as soon as he got a good look at everyone, he understood:

Hermione stood as still as ever, her hands balled up in fists. Her chest was rising and falling steeply, she was absolutely seething, and her eyes were squinted. Ron could see she had a hint of a tear welling up, though she tried her hardest not to let it show.

Mr. Granger was beginning to find his legs again, so he wasn't in need of Mrs. Granger's assistance anymore. He had a look of victory on his face, and he broke into a smile.

Mrs. Granger had a sad look on her face; she felt for her daughter, but knew that her husband was relentless. Hermione probably wouldn't win this one.

Ron looked at Hermione fearfully. He understood what was going on. He walked back into his guest room resignedly, and decided it was best to pack. 

"Dad, I-"

"I've said my piece. You're not leaving. But your friend is. If I guess correctly, he's already packing. I'm surprised by his insight…"

Hermione simply growled. _It isn't worth it, it isn't worth it…just give in…_she thought. She turned sharply and headed into Ron's room.

She sat down on the bed and began to cry. Ron stopped packing and sat next to her. But for some reason Ron wasn't the least bit upset. Instead, he put his arm around her and smiled.

"Ron, you don't get it, they're not gonna let me leave! I'm sorry. I love you, but I guess there's nothing I can do…"

"Hermione, did you think I'd give you up that easily?? You've forgotten one thing…"

She looked up at him, wondering what on earth he could be talking about.

"Well, you know, we **are** wizards…for one thing, you could put a memory charm on them…" he noticed the look of concern on her face… "Well, if you feel bad about that, we **do** know how to apparate…in case you forgot," he said slyly. 

Hermione looked like she had just found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. She hugged Ron tightly and kissed his cheek. 

"Now why didn't I think of that??" she said, taking off for her room. She didn't even care that her parents saw her pull her trunk back out of the closet. She began packing when her father came into her room.

"Hermione, what are you doing? I thought I told you that you weren't leaving…" he said, the anger returning to his face.

Hermione didn't respond. Instead, she began to laugh as she closed her trunk and locked it. She pulled it into the hallway and called for Ron. He came out of his room and placed his trunk next to hers. 

"Well father, it was nice seeing you again!" she said with a smile. 

"Mother, I **do** hope you'll come to the wedding, I'll send you an invitation as soon as I can. I love you mum, see you later!"

She took the handle of her trunk in one hand, and with one last smile and a *pop*, she was gone. Ron took up the handle of his trunk and smiled.

"It was very pleasant to meet you both, again. Thank you for the room, and uh…well, I guess that's all!" He was about to take off as well when a thought crossed his mind.

"Er, Mr. Granger, you might want to uh, relax, or your face may stay that way…"he said with a smirk, and with that he took off, waving as he popped.

Mr. Granger paid no attention to his warning and continued growling. Mrs. Granger, however, looked at him cautiously, and took his face into her hands.

"Honey, smile for me…" she asked sweetly.

"There's nothing to smile about! She's gone! And she's going to marry him! Er, Ron." 

"Well, why don't I make you your favorite breakfast to take your mind off of it…" she said, leading him downstairs to the kitchen. Mr. Granger smiled at the thought of his favorite pancakes…

But when he passed the mirror in the bathroom on the way there, he found that he wasn't smiling…

"ROOOOOOOONNNN!!!!"


	10. Big Brothers

a/n: hello, Heather here, thanks for all the reviews and for all the people who have read this for, we really appreciate it!!!!

disclaimer: I really get tired of writing these, so I'm just gonna say that J.K. owns the characters...but we own the plot.

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 10: Big Brothers

When Hermione and Ron apparated back, Hermione was in tears....she was mad at her father, and embarrassed of him...she wanted nothing more than her parents to come to her weding and be happy for her.Her mother was okay with it, but she knew her father would have to take alot of convincing to even come, let alone be happy for her.

Ron held her close and patted her back as she sobbed into his shoulder.

"it's okay, 'mione, he'll come around, I'm sure of it.." he reassured her.

she smiled up at him through tears" and if he doesn't, well, who cares..I love you, thanks for what you did back there" she said

"no problem....now what do you say we go downstairs and tell everyone we ar back?" asked Ron, trying to cheer her up, and wiping a tear away.

"sure...." she said, taking Ron's hand in hers, they walked downstairs.

surprisingly,everyone wasn't downstairs, only Mrs. Weasley stood in the kitchen

"oh, your back!!...good...how'd it go?" she asked excitedly, but her face fell, when she saw Hermione's tear stained face.

"not good, I'm afraid to say" said Hermione, in a choked voice.

Mrs.Weasley didn't ask any questions, but hugged Hermione in a motherly way.

"where is everyone?" asked Ron

"oh, I told Bill and Charlie to come home, because I had something important to tell them....so everyone is outside..." said Mrs.Weasley

"Bill and Charlie are here?...do they know about the wedding?" asked Ron, surprised.

"yes and no" said Mrs.Weasley, but Ron gave her a confused look, so she explained...

"yes, thy are both here, and no, they don't know about the engagement....I thought I'd leave that up to you to tell them.." smiled Mrs.Weasley.

Ron let out a desperate sigh..

"If anyone faints.... I swear..." he said

"speaking of which, is Percy okay?" asked Hermione

"oh, he's fine, he was in shock for a while, but now he's okay....you two should go outside and tell everyone your home" said Mrs.Weasley

Ron nodded, and pulled Hermione outside with him, Hermione had stopped crying and the color had come back to her face.

When they arrived outside they saw Harry, Ginny, Bill, Charlie, Fred, George and Mr.Weasley outside talking enthusiastically.....Ron hated the butterflies in his stomach that decided to come at that moment.

Bill looked the same, with his long red hair and fang earring, Charlie also looked the same .

Ron sat down and so did Hermione,Charlie then turned to them ,and the rest finally took his lead.

"so where did you two go?" he asked

"we went to Hermione's house.." said Ron, Ginny looked like she wanted to ask how it went, but decided against it.

"it's been a long time since I've seen everyone, everyone has grown so much..." said Bill in an awed voice.

"yeah, before you know it they will be getting married and having babies" laughed Charlie..

Fred and George laughed along with this, making Ron turn red.

"well, they better wait til I get married before they do, it wouldn't be right for my little brothers or sister to get married before me, it'd be weird" laughed Bill

Harry stifled a laugh...and Hermione and Ron exchanged guilty glances.

"does anyone know why mum called us here, what is so important?" asked Charlie.

everyone looked at Ron.

"what?" he asked

"so...you know, eh?" asked Bill

"what is it?" asked Charlie

"yeah, cause no one else here will tell us anything....." said Bill, rolling his eyes.

"er-um....:" started Ron

Hermione then remembered that Ron had told everyone so far, with the exception of her parents, but he had saved her from their wrath..so she decided to speak up.

Hermione put a hand on his trembing hands and gave him a meaningful look, he shut his mouth and Bill and Charlie looked at her curiously.

"I know this may come as a shock, but um, me and Ron are engaged to be married" said Hermion, her cheeks red.

They both looked at her for a moment, their mouths hanging open, then to each other, and back to Ron...

"Is that true?" asked Charlie, in a whisper

Bill nodded, encouraging the question..

Ron nodded his head yes..

"wow...that was unexpected" said Bill, in awe

"at least you didn't faint like Percy" laughed Fred

"so, when did this happen?" asked Bill

" a few days ago" said Ron

"when , are you guys getting married, I need to ask for work off..." said Charlie

"um ,we haven't really discussed that yet.." said Hermione

"maybe we should, you know, set a date for it, I mean...so they will know when to com and all..." said Ron

"I was thinking maybe around Christmas, you know, because everyone will be free to come, and it will also give us time to get things together..." said Hermione

"that sounds bloody brilliant!" said Ron, and kissed her on top of her head..

Fred and George both made 'gagging faces'

Hermione and Ron rolled their eyes, as the others had a good laugh.

"well, I think we need to talk to your mum later and set an actual date to have it on" said Hermione

"okay" said Ron

At that moment Mrs. Weasley appeared outside at the picnic tables and prepared breakfast...

'It felt good to be back' thought Ron, as he began to devour his food....Hermione smiled at him and rolled her eyes at how he ate, like he would never eat again.

Harry and Ginny weren't at the table, they where sitting on the porch, having what seemed to be a serious conversation..

Hermione noticed this too, Ron gave her a questioning glance,but she just shrugged and so he went back to eating.

a/n: that's the end, my friend, now please be kind and review...^_^


	11. Consequental Conversations

Hey you guys, I'm soooo sorry about the wait, but my mom is being cruel and relentless…naw, okay, she's just monitoring how long I spend on the computer. Which is cruel in my eyes!!! Anyway, here you go, chapter eleven. It would be best if you just skimmed this chapter briefly, as I have to admit it's a piece of crap! Sorry, I just don't like this chapter at all. I tried and tried to make it to my liking, but today I'm just not writing to my own liking. I would say 'I hope you enjoy it!' but I know how bad it is, and so I'm just gonna say read it as fast as you can and forget it ever existed! I promise I'll do better next time! Please don't stop reading the story just cause this chapter sucked! My next one will be much better, I promise! And Heather's writing chapter twelve, so that'll of course be brilliant! Okay, I'm out, sorry about this monstrosity of a chapter…

Lauren

Disclaimer: Look, lay off me! I've had a bad enough day as it is, I can't write today! So I don't own Harry Potter, alright? Happy?? Grr…sorry, that isn't aimed at you, just those bully lawyer folk who think I want to get sued.

Chapter eleven 

Consequential Conversation

**"Whatever they're talking about sure is taking a while,"** Hermione whispered to Ron as he handed her the plate of 

pancakes. 

**"I wonder what's going on…they don't look very happy… "**he whispered back, setting the plate down as soon as she had taken what she wanted from it. 

Hermione slowly turned her head to see what he meant. And he was right. Harry was nervously playing with his fingers, and he kept running his hand through his hair. Ginny looked like she was almost on the verge of tears. Just by looking at it, you would think one of two things: either those were tears of joy, and Harry was *gasp!* proposing!! Or those were tears of sadness, and Harry was…well, breaking it off. Hermione thought about this for a minute. Chances were, he wasn't proposing, as she was only sixteen and had another year left at Hogwarts. And then something else figured itself out in Hermione's mind: those reasons were enough for one, or two, people in a relationship to be concerned. There was no doubting it, it would be terribly agonizing to try to survive a long-distance relationship like that. Sure, they would get to see each other over Christmas break, but that wasn't enough. Hermione couldn't imagine what her and Ron's relationship would be like if she didn't see him almost everyday. The longer she watched them, the more she knew she was right. She even felt a tear form behind _her_ eye. 

She wanted so much to tell Ron, but she knew if she did, well, it probably wouldn't be for the best. She silently ate her pancakes as Ginny and Harry slowly walked over to the table and reluctantly sat in the only available chairs, which had unfortunately been placed next to each other. Ron looked up at them when they sat down and almost asked what it was they had been talking about when he felt a kick under the table. He was smart enough not to react painfully, or else she would've hit him again. Instead, he returned to his pancakes, and for the first time he could remember, he lost his appetite. 

"Mum, would you mind if I left the table, I don't feel so great."

"Oh sweetie, what's wrong?" she asked in that loving Mrs. Weasley voice.

"I think I just need to lay down for a bit, nothing to worry about," he said as he stood up. He pushed in his chair and walked back to the house. Hermione looked at Mrs. Weasley pleadingly, and so she let her go as well. 

Hermione caught up with Ron. 

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"Hermione, would you believe me if I said I thought Harry was dumping my sister?" he asked cautiously. 

Hermione looked at him thoughtfully. _As weird as it seems, dad was right, Ron does have excellent insight…_

"Yes, Ron. I would." She stated simply, taking his hand. He looked at her worriedly. That hadn't really been the answer he was hoping for, what he really wanted was for her to convince him that everything between them would be fine. But this time, it wouldn't be so. He squeezed her hand as they ascended the stairs to his room, and as soon as they got there, they automatically plooped themselves on Ron's bed to do some ceiling-watching. Neither of them really knew what to say, so instead of trying, they just lay there silently, thinking about all this. _How can they not be together?? But, they were so happy together! Hmm…_

The two of them fell asleep, lost in their thoughts, and each other's arms. 

A few hours later, Ron was awoken by a tapping on his door. He slowly pulled his arms from under Hermione and headed for the door. As soon as he opened it, he gasped. It was Ginny, and her face was completely red, including her eyes, from crying. He instantly wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. 

"Come on, let's go to your room, Hermione's still asleep. They headed down the stairs and entered her room. She slumped down on her bed and cried into her pillow. Ron sat next to her and pulled her into his arms. 

"Ginny, what is it?" he asked, knowing the answer.

"Well, Harry and I— Harry and I— we broke up…I just, I feel horrible…." she sobbed into his shoulder. Ron held her tighter.

"Ginny, it'll be okay. Really, it will. I promise. It's probably for the best anyway. I mean, it would be a lot harder to spend nine months away from him, wouldn't it?" he said consolingly.

"Yeah, I know, but I just…it's hard. I don't think I can ever get over him…"

"Sure you can, it just takes time is all…"

"No…what would you do if Hermione broke up with you?? You **know** you would never get over that…"

Ron winced at her words, knowing she was right. He tried to imagine what he would do in said situation, but it was just too painful.

"Alright, you're right…but you've got to try. And just know that I'm always here for you, and so is Hermione. We'll help you the best we can. You know that, right?"

Ginny nodded, rubbing her tears on Ron's arm. Soon enough, her crying stopped, and she began to fall asleep. Just as she drifted off, Hermione walked into the room quietly. She looked on lovingly as Ron held his sister close.


	12. Rough Realizations

a/n: Sorry it took me so long to get this up, I've been kinda busy....and also to the one person who agreed that Lauren's chapter was bad, that was just totally rude of you...If you are going to be like that I'd rather you not review, because we wouldn't do that to you, maybe we have consciences though, But really it can hurt people's feelings, I almost deleted 'Sweet Secrets' half way through because of it.I may seem mad, but that's because I despise rude people, we work hard to keep this story updated, even though we are very busy, so if a chapter is short, please don't be all snooty. And keep in mind that everything in this story is planned out already, so everything that happens has a reason.....Please don't think this is aimed at all of you, because it isn't, we love our reviewers, but we hate flamers.Thanks.

Disclaimer: No, Lauren nor I are J.K....I would write this longer...but I am in no mood for it.^_^

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 12: Rough Realizations

After a while, when Ron knew his sister was all the way asleep, He went back to his room, he let out a sigh and fell on the bed, beside Hermione.

Neither of them spoke for a few minutes.

"This is terrible...." said Hermione, quietly.

"Harry is going to get what's coming to him in the morning" said Ron, defensivly

"Oh, no he isn't, Ron...you are going to stay out of it, It's their bussiness" she said seriously.

"Yeah, but it's my sister, and he broke her heart!" he retorted

"It's still none of your bussiness....you don't even know why they broke up." said Hermione

"Yeah, I know it doesn't make any sense, they where perfectly happy a few days ago."

Hermione nodded..

"Why would he break up with her?" he asked

"He probably has a good reason." she said

"No reason is good enough to make my baby sister cry." concluded Ron

Hermione kissed him on the cheek and wrapped her arms around him, laying her head on his chest.

"I've got to talk to him in the morning, rationally, mind you...unless he has a lame excuse."said Ron

Hermione just sighed, she knew that she couldn't change his mind.

"Remember that we don't want everyone mad at each other.... " said Hermione

"Harry should have realized that before he did this.." said Ron

"Ron, it has nothing to do with you, It's not like you forcing them together is going to do any good" said Hermione.

"I never said I was doing that.." said Ron, defensivly

"Well, lets just sleep and then you can talk to him in the morning about it." said Hermione

"Okay Hermione, I don't think it'd be best for me to talk to him tonight anyway"

They both fell asleep in each others arms, Both feeling happy and guilty at the same time, Happy that they had each other, and guilty of the same thing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione woke to Ron getting up.He had a determined look on his face.

"You going to talk to Harry?" she asked groggily.

"That is my plan.." he said

"Your not going to start any problems with him, are you?" she asked nervously.

"Unless he starts in first, I just want an explanation."answered Ron

"Ron, you don't need to go dragging this out to be more than it is, honestly.... "warned Hermione

"I am just going to talk to him.." assured Ron

"I want all our freinds at our wedding..remember that" she said

"I know.." said Ron, and went to the door.

Hermione let out an exasperated sigh as her stubborn fiance exited the room.

Ron found Harry downstairs, he had his things packed beside the couch, Ron guessed he was leaving.

"Look, Ron, before you start in, just let me explain" said Harry, knowing Ron all to well.

"You broke my sister's heart, what is there to explain?"said Ron with a snort.

"I didn't want to, but I think it's best that it happened now, before it got any more serious." said Harry

"I thought you loved her,Harry!"

"I love Ginny with all my heart....But things where complicated"

"So, just when things get complicated, you just break it off?" Ron asked incrediously.

"Ginny is still in school, I won't see her for a whole year, do you know how many things can change in a year?" asked Harry seriously.

Ron thought back to last year when he had dated Lavender, but dumped her for Hermione...but that was totally different..he liked Hermione for years, just like Ginny loved Harry for so long, He could feel her hurt, he felt the same way when Hermione decided to break it off last year when things where 'complicated'...It didn't last long, but this was different. Harry was leaving, Ginny was going to school...He had to get use to them dating, and now he'd have to get use to them breaking up.

"She loves you Harry..." said Ron, quietly.

"This breakup wasn't because I don't love her...I do..I just don't think either of us can go a whole year ....long distance relationships never work, and plus, Ginny deserves to live life, she has spent half of her life wanting to be with me, and I want her to move on and maybe find someone better, I know if we stayed together she would resent me for it.She deserves the best, and I don't think I can give it to her." said Harry simply.

"But if you love her and she loves you, then the best thing for her is for you two to be together" said Ron

"This isn't like you and Hermione, You guys are just meant to be...But I don't think me and Ginny wan to get married right out of school, I know I don't..I am starting Quidditch season soon and I will be traveling alot, I'll never be home, and she'll be all by herself most of the time, I can't do that to her." said Harry

"Your choosing Quidditch over my sister?" aksed Ron

"Ron, you are missing the point completely, she is going to be gone for a year, I am going to be traveling with the Quidditch team, we will both be meeting new people and I think it'd be better if we both weren't tied down in a relationship. I explained all this to her, and she agreed with me" said Harry

"She agreed with you?" asked Ron, making sure he heard right.

"yes...we both agreed that maybe when she is out of school and everything that maybe we can try it again..." said Harry

Ron didn't know what to say, If Ginny agreed with him,well, there wasn't more to say.Although Ron knew they where perfect together and they would be depressed without each other.

"Okay then....I am going to go eat breakfast..I hope you know that your making a huge mistake, you'll never get a girl to love you as much as Ginny" said Ron

"I guess only the future holds that answer, well..I best be going....tell everyone i said bye, and don't forget to send me an invitation to that wedding of yours, I'll see you soon." said Harry and with that he disapparated.

Ron looked on, as he sat on the couch, he was just shocked that this hapend, they where so happy a few days ago.

Soon, He was accompanied by Hermione as she silently sat next to him on the sofa and layed her head on his shoulder.She took his hand in hers.

"You would never leave me would you?...even if things got complicated?" asked Ron finally

"I wouldn't be engaged to you if I thought otherwise" she smiled up at him, he kissed her forehead as a reply.

"I just still can't believe it happened.." he said a few minutes later.

"Maybe we should go eat breakfast and cheer you up, we have a lot to do today..." she said, trying to cheer him up.

They then made their way to the kitchen, Ron thankful that he had someone that cared so much.

a/n: that's the end of that chapter....please review!!!


	13. Fortunate Favor

Hey guys, Lauren here! Chapter thirteen is up and running! Sorry it took me so long, but I got a bit busy with school starting and everything…anyway, this chapter's not too eventful, but it's a bit more cheery since I was a little sad about all the, well, sad stuff going on. So I made this one a little lighthearted. So sue me. Anyway, I hope the lack of events in this chapter doesn't upset anyone, particularly Heather…I didn't really know what other eventful things could happen right now, it was time for an emotional break. Haha, time to stop explaining myself and get straight the story! Enjoy!

Lauren

Disclaimer: Look, no one really **owns** Harry Potter, it's all just a myth! J.K. doesn't really exist! Ha! (imagine what life would be like if that were true…) just kidding! Haha, but **I** don't own Harry Potter, and if I don't, then NO ONE can! Mwahahahahaha…

Chapter thirteen

Fortunate Favor

Ginny never showed up for breakfast, which neither Ron or Hermione could say was completely unexpected. The rest of the Weasleys wondered if she was alright, but Ron assured them that he had checked on her and that she was just sleeping peacefully. To avoid feeling guilty for lying, he went upstairs promptly after breakfast with toast in hand and knocked on Ginny's door. She didn't get up to answer the door, but she did allow him to come in, which was more than the rest of her family could say. Ron sat down at the end of her bed and handed her his offerings, which she took graciously. She only ate one piece, and put the other three down next to her. She looked up at her brother and smiled weakly. But other than the subtle rising and falling of her chest, she didn't move.

"So, how do you feel?" asked Ron with a smile, hoping she would cheer up a little, but knowing she wouldn't.

"Mm, I feel—oh hell Ron, I feel awful," she admitted. 

She sighed, upset that she had given herself away so easily, but once she started, she couldn't really stop.

"I don't want to feel like this. I know that it's over. But I don't want to admit it. At the same time, I can't just be stuck on him! It'll drive me mad! What am I going to do??" she asked exasperatedly, looking at Ron helplessly.

But Ron was the one who felt helpless. He had no clue what to say to her. He had never been in her situation. Well, sort of, but in the end he got the girl, so this didn't currently apply to him. He didn't want to give her any old advice and come off sounding like he knew what he was talking about when he really didn't. So he just said what seemed natural.

"Ginny, you're gonna do whatever it is you have to do to get your life back to normal."

She looked up at him. Even though it was simple, generic advice, it was perfect. He was so right. She had to get on with her life, she couldn't just sit there and mope for the rest of her life. For an instant, she smiled a real, big smile. It made Ron happy to see his sister okay. 

He stood up, kissed her on the forehead, and left her to finish her toast. He went up the stairs to his bedroom to find Hermione sitting on the bed, smiling.

"What's gotten into you? Why are you so happy?" he asked as he sat down next to her. He obviously didn't think it could have been anything **he** had done.

She took one of his hands in hers and kissed it.

"Ron, I think that was one of the smartest, kindest things you've ever said," she whispered sweetly, looking into his eyes. He looked at her confusedly.

"What? What did I say?" he asked seriously. Hermione sighed.

"Ah, Ron…never mind. I just wanted you to know that I think it's sweet how kind and caring you are towards Ginny. It makes me feel very confident about how you'll be with our kids…"

Ron was at once caught off guard and excited. They had never discussed kids before, and he knew that if he were with Hermione, he'd have oodles and oodles of them…

"Speaking of kids, Ron…what are your thoughts?" 

"Hermione, I would love to have oodles and oodles of children with you…" he said dreamily.

"Okay Ron, **you **try having them, and then tell me what you think," she said, laughing at the look on his face.

…or maybe he could just settle for a couple. 

Ginny sat in her room for most of the day, wondering what Harry was doing. She decided that she would go downstairs, just to check. Not like she was interested. Of course not…

She slowly turned the door handle and peeked out, making sure no one saw her. She didn't want people to think she had left her room, it would ruin her current reputation. 

She snuck down the hallway, peeked over the top of the staircase to see if anyone was down there that might fall witness, and she proceeded with caution. She got down there, but found that no one was there, not even Harry. His stuff wasn't there either. She forgot all about her cover and took off looking around the house. But nothing of his was to be found. Ginny began to panic. Harry wasn't there? At all?

She ran upstairs to Ron's room and barely knocked before entering. Ron started as she entered the room, breathing heavily.

"Harry's *pant* gone??" she asked, hoping it was all a misunderstanding.

"Er, yeah…I didn't tell you because I thought it might upset you even more…he left this morning, while you were sleeping…" he replied slowly. 

Ginny sank into the chair that was (luckily) behind her and rested her chin in her hands. She sighed as she looked at the floor. Watching her, Hermione suddenly came up with an idea, though she proceeded hesitantly. If she suggested it, it could take her mind off of things, but at the same time, could make things worse…it was worth a shot.

"Ginny, I was going to bug Ron about helping me start planning the wedding, but you and I both know how that would turn out…" Ron scowled and rolled his eyes, muttering something about women. "…so I was wondering if you'd like to help me instead. It would probably be a lot easier with a girl's perspective, and besides, you are one of my best friends…" she trailed off with a hopeful grin. There was silence as Hermione awaited Ginny's answer. Finally, Ginny looked up at Hermione.

"I'd love to! I think that would be great! When do we start??"

Hermione grinned at Ron as he dropped himself onto his bed. 


	14. Wedding Wonders

A/N: Okay, hello peeps!...well, I certainly hope that you all who have read this far are enjoying it...I know alot of G/Hers are kinda sad right now, just remember...it all has a purpose...So please don't stop reading ^_^

Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling, but I wish I was...

~~Together at Last~~

Chapter 14:~~Wedding Wonders~~

"We can start today, but I have to talk to Ron for a bit...Why don't you go and get those magazines of ** 'Witch Wedding'** from your mum, I was suppose to get them from her earlier, but I got preoccupied." said Hermione, happily.

"Okay, thanks so much Hermione.." said Ginny, giving Hermione a genuine smile as she exited the room.

Hermione smiled as she watched her leave...

"Well, it certainly feels good to see her smile again" said Hermione finally.

"I can't believe you're going to let her help you" said Ron

"Well, why wouldn't I?...I was going to anyway, I can't plan it by myself, you know..." she smiled.

"I dunno...I just thought you'd ask for someone else's opinion, namely, uh, me!" said Ron

"Well, of course you're going to help, but I didn't think you wanted to help with the dresses and stuff...." giggled Hermione

"I suppose you're right, carry on" said Ron, obviously not wanting to discuss dresses with Hermione.

"That's what I thought... So... When do you think we _should _get married?...I mean a date?.. I was going to ask your mum, but I wanted to discuss it with you first." said Hermione, taking his hand in hers.

"Well, we already established the fact that it should be at Christmas time,..which I think is great, I will be able to buy the wedding supplies, after all I am starting work tomorrow...I think the perfect date will be Decemeber 23rd" He said grinning.

"That sounds good, we can talk to your mum and say we found a date for our wedding, and I am glad you decided to get a job at the ministry " said Hermione, grinning back.

"Well, I had to get a job some where, I mean we can't very well live in my parent's house forever, I think after a few paychecks we should focus on a new place to live, then set plans for the wedding" said Ron

"I agree, I mean the Burrow is nice and comfortable and all, But I think it'd be nice to decorate our own place and such... Plus, It'd be nice to have more privacy.." she added.

As Hermione reached over to kiss him, Ginny came back in.....Hermione gave Ron an I-told-you-so look.

"Are you two done talking yet?....I can't wait to help plan this, I found the prettiest wedding robes " she said excitedly, you could tell she was trying hard not to think about Harry,Hermione then got up and walked over to the door by Ginny.

"No, me and Ron are done talking, We found a date for our wedding!" said Hermione happily.

"Oooooh, when?" asked Ginny

"December 23rd!...I need to go tell your mum...." said Hermione.

"Okay, Wanna go to my room to look at wedding robes?" asked Ginny.

"Sure, Ron we'll see you later.." said Hermione as she left, talking enthusiastically to Ginny.

Ron rolled his eyes as he fell backwards onto his bed, He realised just how much he was going to have to do the next few months, he had to get a job and work, plan a wedding and look for a place to live...

~~~~~~~~~

Hermione spent most of the night talking and discussing the wedding with Ginny, she was keen not to bring Harry up in her presence, she didn't want Ginny to cry again, Ginny afterall, did seem like a little sister to her...she was as upset at Harry about the breakup as Ron was, but she didn't want to be enemies with him either, and as she had said, it wasn't any of her bussinness, but she did think it sweet how Ron comforted his little sister, Hermione knew he'd make the perfect father from that display....The thought of themselves as parents made Hermione smile widely as she fell asleep that night.

Ron had to wake early because he was starting work...he was excited..he never had a job before, he wasn't to enthused at the fact that Percy would be around, but he was happy that he could please Hermione and make her proud of him, and that's all that mattered really.

As he bustled around the room getting ready, Hermione sat up in bed groggily.

"That's right...you have to start work today" she yawned.

"Yeah, I wonder what it will be like..." he said excitedly.

"I dunno... but I hope you have a nice day and I hope you enjoy your work" she said 

"I hope I do too" he mused

"Just think, soon we will have our own place and our own things, and our own children" she smiled.

"I can't wait....Though I think I need to have a job for a few years instead of a few months before we start thinking of children..." he laughed.

"I agree, no rush..we have the rest of our lives.." she replied.

"Well, I guess I am off then, wish me luck!..oh, and I hope you have fun with Ginny, I really apreciate you getting her mind off of Harry" he said seriously.

Hermione got up out of bed and wrapped her arms around Ron's neck and pulled him down for a kiss.

"I wish you all the luck in the world, and have a great day!" she smiled.

He smiled and nodded and left with a small pop, The day had already started out great with that kiss, he just hoped that the work he'd have to do was just as satisfying.

Meanwhile....

Hermione couldn't get back to sleep after Ron left, so she decided to sneak into Ginny's room to get a few copies of '**Witch Wedding'** she left in there last night to pass time until people woke up.

But as she reached Ginny's door she stopped, she could hear crying from inside....Hermione's heart broke, she knew that Ginny wouldn't get over Harry in a day, but it still hurt to see her go through so much.

Hermione held her breath as she knocked on the door quietly, Ginny then answered the door, her face was red and she looked embarrassed as she saw Hermione.

"Um, I was just coming down here to get those magazines, I didn't know you was awake, Ron left and well...." she started.

"Sorry Hermione, I know I shouldn't cry, It's pointless, but I just can't help it..." started Ginny.

"I think we need to talk, I think it'd be best for you to just get what your feeling out in the open, because it hurts more when you keep it in.." said Hermione

Ginny nodded and let Hermione come in, they sat on her bed .

"So what is bothering you, besides the obvious?" asked Hermione

"It's just..all of last night I was helping you plan your wedding, and after we all went to bed, I realised that me and Harry will never be like you and Ron...I didn't recieve the happy ending you guys did, only since I was 10 did I first see Harry and I knew even from then that I wanted to marry him someday, so when we finally dated it was like a dream come true....everything was perfect, and then he dumped me, I know he had reasons to do so, but still...I love him more than anything...." she said and let a tear fall down her cheek.

"But maybe down the road when everything is less complicated you guys will have a second chance a it?" stated Hermione, feeling guilty..maybe it wasn't the best thing for her to offer Ginny to help with the wedding, she never thought of how much it must tear her up inside...

"Only time will tell...though I doubt it, I mean, he is going to be the famous Harry Potter and he is going to be playing proffesional Quidditch, every girl will be after him, and I am sure that I will be forgotten quickly." said Ginny, with a depressed sigh.

"I don't think Harry is that dense, he loves you...I know he does...." said Hermione, she didn't really know what to say...

"well, thanks Hermione...I hope your right" she said.

"Look, Ginny, do you think it's to much for you to help me?...I don't want you to get depressed or something, I just offered for you to take your mind off of stuff, but I didn't realise how much it would hurt you" said Hermione sympathetically.

"No!...I do want to help, It's going to be fun!" said Ginny, putting a smile on.

"you sure?" asked Hermione, uncertainly.

"Positive!" said Ginny..

Hermione and Ginny sat talking about alot of things and looking at wedding robes, Hermione wondered how Ron's day at work was going....

A/N: Thanks for reading!!!....PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!! THANKS BUNCHES!!!! ^_^


	15. Disturbing Discoveries

Hey everyone! It's Lauren, and I finally have chapter…what chapter is this anyway? Something like 15 I think. Okay, well, here's why it took so long: my computer is trashed, and it's taking two weeks to fix it, so I can only get on here at school. I'm so sorry it took so long! But don't worry, after heather's next chapter, I'll be up to speed. So no worries. Anyway, hope you like the twist in this chapter! Thanks for sticking around!

Lauren

Disclaimer: look, I can't think of anything clever, so hear hear: I don't own Haryr Potter!

Chapter fifteen

Disturbing Discoveries

Ron appeared in front of the Ministry building. Sure, he could have just apparated all the way inside the building, but he was far too nervous. So he stood there, in front of the building, inhaling deeply and staring down the doors. After a moment, he self-consciously brushed some imaginary lint off his pants, counted to three, and headed slowly toward the door. As soon as he opened the door, he was almost blown out of the building by the immense commotion inside. He looked around, and everyone was running around, pushing past each other in some odd, inexplicable rush. _So **this is what dad was talking about… He looked for some sort of directory, anything to tell him where to go, when his eyes fell across an information desk. He managed (somehow) to make his way across the room and approached the woman behind the desk.**_

"Excuse me, but um, could you tell me where I'm supposed to be…" he asked shyly.

"What department?" she asked monotonously, not looking up from whatever she was doing.

"Er, International Magical Cooperation, I think…" he replied nervously. 

"Third floor, on the right. Take the elevator and make a right, third door on the left."

"Er, thanks," he said politely, getting more and more nervous. He walked away, looking for the elevator, when he ran into someone, knocking them over. He stood up and reached out his hand to help them up.

"I'm, I'm so sorry! It's just so busy in here, it's so hard to get around, I was just looking for the elevator…" he said quickly, cursing himself for screwing up before he even got to work.

"That's alright, really. I know exactly what you mean, this place is insane. Thank you," she said as he pulled her up. He got a good look at her and realized right then who it was. 

"Eh, Lavender…" he said, pulling his hand away quickly.

"Oh, Ron, um…hello."

"What are you doing here?" he asked sharply.

"Well, I sort of…work here. And what, may I ask, are **you doing here?" she replied, mimicking his tone.**

"Well, my brother got me a job here, so I work here as well. Um, where exactly is your department?" he asked, praying it wasn't the department of International Magical Cooperation, or wherever it was he was supposed to be going. Not like he knew or anything.

"Well, not that it's any of your business, but I happen to be working in the department of International Magical Cooperation, thankyouverymuch. And, where exactly are **you working?" she asked haughtily.**

Ron rubbed his forehead frustratingly. _Oh my god, oh my god…why me? Why? _

"Erm, Lavender, I have to go…" he said frantically, and without a goodbye he rushed past the crowd and walked out the door. He needed some fresh air, and desperately.

_Oh Merlin, I can't do this! What was I thinking? Oi, what'll I tell Hermione? _

He apparated back to the burrow, all the while trying to think of something to tell her.

Back at the Burrow…

Hermione was sitting with Ginny, going through the bridal magazines and picking out brides' maids dresses. Ginny wanted them to be pink, while Hermione really preferred the lavender. (ironically…) All of a sudden, in the middle of their dispute, there was a loud commotion from the kitchen. Hermione looked up at the clock on the wall and noticed that Ron's 'hand' was on 'home' instead of 'work'. Worried, she rushed over to the kitchen.

"Ron, are you okay? What happened? Why aren't you at work? Is something wrong??"

"Mione, you sound like my mum…" he said dejectedly.

"Well, what's wrong? Why do you look so-"

"Mione, I can't go back there. I can't go back to work."

"What? Well, what is it? What's wrong?" she asked sympathetically, wrapping her arm around him.

"Um, well…" he really didn't want to tell her that Lavender, her least favorite person in the world, was going to be working in **his department. **

"Ron…what? You can tell me, can't you?" she asked, a little hurt.

"Well, you'll never guess who I'll be working with!" he exclaimed sarcastically.

"Who?"

"Er, Lavender is in my department…" he said finally, lowering his voice to a whisper.

Hermione was silent, but you could see the anger rising in her cheeks. But when she finally spoke, she stayed calm.

"Ron, you are going to go to work, do your job, and not even give so much of a glance to that girl. Because she doesn't matter. Not one bit. And you don't care about her. So you have nothing to worry about. And I think she knows not to mess with you…unless she'd like to mess with me." She said, a steely glint in her eyes. Ron was a bit comforted by her words, and she was right, she didn't matter. Not one bit. But as he bent down to kiss her forehead and pulled her close to him, he didn't see the tear roll down her cheek, or the worried expression on her face.


	16. Staying Strong

a/n: Hey! Sorry it took me so long to update...I was waiting on a certain # of reviews to update....Plus, I have been working on my h.p. site, it has lots about H/G and R/H..I love em..If you wanna check out the site go here: http://groups.msn.com/AllAboutPotter/home.msnw ...Okay, well...I better get writing more, and I really hope more people review this time!!!! ^ ~

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the rights to Harry Potter, If I did, well...I wouldn't be typing this disclaimer...now would I? Not to mention I'd know all the secrets of book 5....yay, it comes out June 21!!!!!can't wait!

Together at last 

Chapter 16: Staying Strong

At that moment, Ginny ran into the room to see what happened.

"Hermione, what-" she stopped as she saw Ron, she gave him a curious glance, as he looked over Hermione's shoulder.. This gave Hermione time to wipe away that tear and regain control over herself....She had to be strong...Lavender hadn't a chance with Ron.

Hermione finally pulled back.

"Well...You had best go back to work now" she said, with a forced smile.

"Are you sure.? ..I mean-" started Ron

"Ron, I trust you completely, I know you would never hurt me....Lavender is in the past.." said Hermione reassuringly.

Ginny then left the room,. seeing as she probably shouldn't hear this conversation.

"But, there are other jobs...and all" said Ron, he was obviously not wanting another run-in with Lavender....

"Ron, ministry jobs are the best, if you turn this one down then hard telling when you will get another one.... listen, go back to work, and if Lavender gives you any problems, well...I'll come in there myself and straighten her out for you, okay?" said Hermione, In a final sort of way.

Ron nodded..

"Hermione, I suppose your right, she just put us through hell last year..I don't want her getting any ideas this year....I love you Hermione, and I don't want anything to ever come between us again" said Ron.

Hermione reached up and kissed him on the cheek..

"Ronald Weasley, nothing could keep us apart....now you better get back before they think you're a no-show!" she said enthusiastically.

"Okay, then..I love you!" and with that he disapparated with a small pop..

"I love you too" she said quietly..

Hermione stood there in that spot for a few moments.She knew she could trust Ron, but it wasn't Ron she was worried about. Hermione thought that after Hogwarts Lavender would be out of the picture for good, but now they where working together and Hermione wasn't there to stop anything that she tried to pull...she only wished that Ron would love her enough to resist any of Lavender's temptations...

She then returned and found Ginny sitting on the couch in the living room looking at the magazines once again...she looked up as Hermione sat down on the couch and picked up a magazine.

"What's going on?" asked Ginny

Hermione let out a sigh...

"Lavender..." said Hermione

"What about her?.. I mean that was last year, It's over and done with, why bring her up now?" asked Ginny, confused.

"Because she is working in the same department as Ron" said Hermione, She was fighting back the urge to cry...or better yet scream.

"Is that why he came back?..I mean to tell you?" asked Ginny, sympathy in her voice.

"Yeah....I am not worried about Ron, I trust Ron completely..." said Hermione, trailing off.

"But you don't trust Lavender..?" finished Ginny.

Hermione nodded, and flipped through a few pages in the magazine carelessly.

"Hermione, Ron cares for you..you guys are getting married, He dumped her for you last year...I very much doubt he could ever do anything to hurt you....I know he wouldn't....now Lavender can make an arse out of herself and try something, but Ron loves you to much to ever give into her.." reassured Ginny

"I know that...it's just...well, what if he would?" asked Hermone, unable to hold back her tears...

"Hermione, he wouldn't and that's all that matters, you're very lucky to have someone that cares so much about you.....Only some of us can dream" said Ginny.

"Ginny, I am sorry I shouldn't be talking to you about this...I know your still hurting, and here I am acting like an insecure baby..." said Hermione, clearing her throat.

"You have every right to be acting the way you are...and I am happy that you talk to me about these things, I don't want everyone treating me like I am made of glass..I am human, I will get over Harry...true,it may take time...but I will get over it...I'll have to..." said Ginny.

"Ginny, you are a whole lot stronger than I would be if I was in your place" said Hermione

"Only because I have to be..." said Ginny.

After a few moments silence their attention went back to picking out wedding robes and such.....Ginny then came back to the original question before Ron came.

"So...Is it going to be pink or uh, lavender?" asked Ginny

Hermione, going against what she originally wanted, gave a grin.

"I do believe we should go with the pink, lavender can go to hell!" she and Ginny both laughed.

"I knew you'd come around!...pink it is!" said Ginny enthusiastically.

Meanwhile..........

Within seconds Ron was back in the busy ministry building...He felt nervous, but encouraged from what Hermione had told him, this was his first day at work and he was going to make the best of it...Lavender or not.

He then got to the office he was suppose to be in...

He sat down in an empty chair until some body walked in, it was Percy.

"Oh, hello, Ron!" he said enthusiastically.

"So, uh, what exactly do I have to do?" said Ron, uncertainly.

"Well, not much so far...you have to be trained and everything..." said Percy.

"So are you going to train me for the job?" asked Ron, uncertainly.

"Oh, no..I have much more important matters to deal with, but we have someone to train you, don't worry" he said excitedly.

"And who is he?" asked Ron.

"Not a he, Ron, a she... you should know her, she was in your year, and she was more than willing to take the opportunity to train you!" said Percy.

Ron's stomach gave a flop....He knew who he was talking about, but he still had to ask...

"And what's her name?" asked Ron.

"Oh, why don't you talk to her yourself, here she comes!" said Percy.

Just then Lavender walked into the room, she smiled over at him, Ron glared back.

"Ron, meet Lavender, your trainer and co-worker!" 

"Pers....can I talk to you ?.....in private?" asked Ron

"Sure, Ron..." 

They then went into a small room...Ron couldn't work with Lavender, let alone be trained by her!..this was going to be a nightmare!

"Percy.... I can't work with Lavender, she can't train me....." said Ron

"Why not?" he asked curiously.

"Because we didn't exactly leave on best terms last year.." said Ron.

"Well, Ron whatever you did last year, it seems like she's over it.." said Percy.

"I am not the one who needs to be forgiven!" said Ron

"Ron, she is going to train you!....First thing you should know is that you don't let your bussiness life and social life intermingle....." said Percy seriously.

"And what would you know about that?! you have no social life to worry about!....If Lavender tries anything to break me and Mione up...I swear-" started Ron angrily.

"I don't think she has any intention of doing that, and yes, Ron, I do have a social life, contrary to popular belief...and I guess you should know that Lavender and I are dating...." said Percy.

"What?!....Pers..I thought you where smarter than to fall for a ditz like Lavender!" said Ron, dumfounded.

"She is actually quite smart Ron, now I have work to get back to and you need to start your training.." said Percy and left before Ron could even say anything.

Ron stood there realising how bad this situation was, Percy of course didn't know anything about last year, so even if Lavender did try anything he probably wouldn't believe him....and he was dating her!......He definitely did not see that coming.

a/n : That's the end of that chapter!!!!!!.....can't wait for Lauren's chapter!!!!!..........now PLEASE review!!!! we love reviews...we love reviewers!!!!!!!!!!!^_^


	17. Angering Aftermath

A/N: Hey you guys! Lauren here! Hope you like this one, it's full of…well, you'll find out. Anyway, I made a reference to a comment made by Allie, hope you don't mind! It just suddenly came to me…anywhoozle, hope you enjoy! 

Lauren

Disclaimer: instead of wasting my time telling you all that I don't own Harry Potter (which I don't) I'd rather say I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEXT BOOK!!!! YAY!!!! JUNE 21ST, HERE I COME…

Chapter seventeen

Angering Aftermath

Ron heaved a sigh. _Why is this happening to me? Why? _ He ran his hands through his hair and rested his chin in his palms. _And I thought my day was bad before… After a moment, he stood up, stuffed his hands into his pockets, and walked back over to his office. Lavender was sitting in his chair, fiddling with his pen until she heard him walk in, when she jumped up unexpectedly. Ron frowned as Lavender straightened out her skirt and grinned. _

"So Ron! Are you ready then? We have quite a bit of work to do, and we've already wasted twenty minutes! Shall we then?" she asked, showing an obviously falsely innocent smile. Ron clenched his teeth.

"Lavender, let me get a few things straight here, all right?" he growled, baring his teeth. Lavender started a little, but still maintained that obnoxious grin.

"First off, from now on, don't ever call me Ron like you know me, because you really don't. Don't think that anything that happened in our past permits you to talk to me like I've forgiven you, which I haven't. Second, I'm not going to sit here and act like nothing's happened, like you so choose, so you can just put away that little grin of yours, because contrary to your act, we are **not** old friends. And lastly…I'm not quite sure why exactly you're with my brother, or how he's managed to maintain his **serious** lack of judgment this whole time, but I assure you, I will be watching you…he may not know about the past, but I damn sure do, and if you do anything suspicious, I will do anything and everything in my power to-"

"How are things going in here?" Percy asked cheerily, sticking his head in the door. Ron nervously stuck his hands behind his back and nodded. Lavender looked at Ron and smiled, then looked at Percy with a look of sorrow and a pouty lip.

"Lavender, what is it?" Percy asked.

_Oh Merlin, what is she doing? If she tells him what I said, he'll kill me…_

She looked back at Ron and grinned evilly. 

"Oh, nothing sweetie, I just miss you, that's all," she said sweetly. Ron sighed, then nearly growled, but he contained himself. Percy kissed her cheek and waved goodbye, telling her he'd see her later that evening. Ron rolled his eyes. _If he only knew what he's gotten himself into…Lavender giggled, then turned back to Ron, only this time, she pointed her finger at his chest._

"Mr. Weasley, I understand that you're engaged to Hermione, am I correct?" she asked, and Ron nodded. "Percy doesn't know anything about **us**, and I plan to keep it that way. So, if you don't want anything…**disastrous to um, come up suddenly, I'd keep my big mouth shut if I were you," she threatened, advancing on him until he fell into his chair. Ron gulped. _That went well…_ **

"Now, Mr. Weasley, let me show you our system," she said kindly as Percy passed by once more.

Ron apparated in front of the burrow and dragged his exhausted self to the front door. Yeah, he could have apparated all the way _inside_ the burrow, but…hell, he was far past the point of being precise. He was lucky to have even made it that far. He opened the door, kicked off his shoes, and flung himself onto the sofa. Hermione heard the door shut and came to greet her fiancé. But one look at his face dampened her spirits. But that one look into her eyes brightened his day.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Hermione asked, concerned, while envisioning herself attacking Lavender with a spork. Ron didn't know where to start. _Hmm, let's see…there's Percy and Lavender, I can't tell Percy about Lavender, Lavender's probably up to something, but wait, I can't tell Percy…is that it then?_

"Well, um, if I tell you this, you can't say a word about it to anyone else, as I suspect that he'll be telling everyone sometime soon anyway, and I don't want him to think I told everyone out of concern or something, not that he knows why I would have any reason for concern in the first place, of course, but-"

"Ron!" 

"Okay, sorry. Er, well, I have bad news, and I have more bad news. Which would you like to hear first?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood a bit. Hermione didn't laugh.

"Okay, okay, well…Lavender is um…LavenderandPercyaredating." Hermione's mouth fell open, but Ron was kind enough to close it for her. 

"Wha- but, well—HOW?!?!" she cried.

"Oh no, that's not all!" Ron laughed. "Oh no, what's more is, she hasn't told him anything about last year. And if I tell him…well, let's just say it won't be pretty. Just like she wreaked havoc last time, she's perfectly capable of doing again. Who knows what she could do! I mean, she even brought up our being engaged, so-"

"What?!? Oh no, oh god…" Hermione began pacing the room, her hands clenched in fists at her side. She was breathing heavily and grinding her teeth. Ron was really afraid of what she would say. But after a moment, she calmed down and sat next to Ron.

"Okay, so she's after Percy, which means she's probably up to something. The fact that she mentioned our engagement—that really frightens me. Honestly, that just makes it seem like you're her target. I mean, using your brother as an excuse to be around you, that just gives her a clear shot! Oh god, what are we gonna do?"

"I don't know! Argh, god, I never want to see her again, I wish this could all just have never happened! I never want to go back to work!" Ron yelled into a sofa cushion.

"Hey you guys! So Ron, how did you like your first day on the job?"

Percy walked in from the kitchen. Obviously his day went well enough that he could make it that far. 

"Oh, hey Pers!" Ron said, sitting up. "It was great! Man, I loved it, I can't wait to go back tomorrow!" he said, pleasing his brother with his mock anticipation.

"Oh good! And was Lavender okay? With your training I mean?"

"Yeah, um, she was great too!" he said, Hermione gripping his hand tightly.

"Oh, great! When I told her you'd be starting in our department, she jumped at the opportunity to be your trainer. I was actually going to do it myself, but when she offered ever so persistently, I realized it was probably better that way, since it would be a little weird for your brother to train you, you know? So this way it's less awkward!" he said, heading for the stairs. 

"Well, see you both at dinner!" he yelled, as he disappeared up the steps.

Hermione turned to look at Ron, but instead of the tirade he was expecting, she was speechless. She just sat there, staring at the space above Ron's head, offended by this information. Ron had no idea she had offered to train him, he had thought it all a coincidence. But now that he thought about it, it all made sense…

Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her and kissed her forehead, then slid his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer.

"Ron, you'd never leave me, right?" she asked, a slight tremble in her voice. He put his head next to hers and whispered in her ear.

"Hermione, I love you. I always have, and I always will. Nothing can keep me away from you. Nothing."


	18. Working Worries

A/n: Okay, sorry for taking so long to write this, I have been super busy.. anywhoozles, more story coming!

Disclaimer: Don't own Harry, Ron, or Hermione...or anyone else. J.K. is the supreme ruler of Harry Potter!

Chapter 18:Working Worries

"I can't believe that Percy would sink so low as to date Lavender...I mean...What if-" started Hermione, but Ron cut her off.

"But Percy doesn't know about last year at all, and you know how good she can play little-miss-innocent....well, she's got him blinded." said Ron.

"Why don't you talk some sense into him? You're his brother..." said Hermione.

"Mione! He won't listen..I tried to talk to him today, besides, If I told him... she already brought up our engagement as a way of getting even." said Ron.

"But she can't do anything about us getting married, the wedding could be horrible and it'd still be great because I'll be marrying you...Do you want your brother to give his heart to someone like Lavender?!" said Hermione.

"No, but it is his decision ..He'll find out... "' said Ron.

"She just had better keep her hands off of you, or else there will be hell to pay!" said Hermione seriously.

"You don't have to worry on my behalf." said Ron. "Although it would fun to watch you kick Lavender's arse." grinned Ron.

Hermione couldn't help but smile.." Honestly, Ron..I am serious.." 

"Um, how is Ginny?" asked Ron.

"Better...She's really taking this well, this morning she was crying, and we talked about it.I really feel sorry for her.I do hope Harry comes around, they are made for each other...she loves him...I couldn't stand it if I lost you like that.." said Hermione, seriously.

"Don't even think like that!...I'd never leave you..ever.." said Ron.

"Thank you, Ron" said Hermione, smiling up at him.

The next morning Ron didn't want to wake up to go to work, but he had to if he ever wanted to live somewhere besides the Burrow.

"Now, Ron, Don't worry about Lavender. .Just do your job and treat her like any other coworker.." said Hermione.

"I'll try, but she isn't just any other coworker...she is an evil, manipulative-"But he didn't finish his sentence because Hermione had kissed him.

"You better get to work..." said Hermione.

"Back to hell!..." said Ron, enthusuastically.

Hermione laughed...

"See you later.." she said.

"Bye!" he kissed her and disapparated.

He went up to the office where he found Lavender waiting for him. She was wearing a red suit and her hair was up.

"Good morning!" she said enthusiastically, as if none of yesterday happened.

"It was until I saw you.." he grumbled under his breath.

"Huh?" she asked completely oblivious.

"Nothing.. let's just get this training over with." said Ron.

"Before we do Ron, I just wanted to say sorry for getting angry yesterday...I know you have every right to be angry with me... But really, why was I the one who was suddenly made the bad guy last year?" she asked.

"Where do you want me to begin?!" he asked incrediously.

"Well, I wouldn't have had to do any of it if you weren't sneaking behind my back..how would you had felt if I had done that to you, eh?" she asked.

"Lavender, that's besides the point...You don't mess with Hermione, I love her..and I'd die for her, and no one, I repeat, no one can stand between us." said Ron.

"Well, excuse me for seeing a good guy and wanting to keep him for myself, guys like you are hard to find... I really did feel for you.." said Lavender.

"Listen Lavender, I don't know where you are trying to go with this, but lets remind ourselves, that you are dating my brother...you do anything to hurt him, and I will surely do something about it." said Ron.

"I have no intention of hurting your brother, Perry." said Lavender.

"Percy!" said Ron, disbelievingly.

"Right, Percy...he's really nice..not to mention the red hair, I love red hair..." said Lavender, putting her fingers through Ron's hair and inching closer.

Ron jumped back, and looked at her in rage..

"I am not interested in you, so keep your hands off of me!" said Ron.

"Oh please Ron, don't flatter yourself to much, I was just complimenting on your hair, I wasn't trying to make a move on you or something." she said rolling her eyes.

"Well, considering last year, you are capable of anything." said Ron.

"Lots of things have changed since then, I mean hell, last year for a while you liked me..you asked ME out, lets not forget..oh, and then you cheated on me with HER..." said Lavender.

"Grow up!...Listen, I am willing to put the past behind us and try to work together...just promise me that you aren't in this relationship with my brother under false pretenses of maybe getting closer to me.." said Ron.

"Ron, I would love to put the past behind us and move on and work together civilly. As for Perry-" she started.

"Percy!" he corrected again.

"Percy. Well, he is nice . And since he is your brother he has to be a great guy, if I can't have you then I can have the next best thing." said Lavender brightly.

"Yeah, you'll never have me, remember that." said Ron.

"I thought we where going to leave the past behind us?" said Lavender with a sigh.

"I just wanted to get my point across, I am very in love with Hermione, and no one better jeaprodize our relationship." he said.

"Don't worry I'll be a good girl" said Lavender.

Just then Someone called for her outside the office.

"I'll be back.." said Lavender.

"Whatever." said Ron, and before he could stop her , Lavender had reached up and kissed him on his cheek and left the room.

Ron didn't know what to do..but he was sure that Lavender wasn't going to really put the past behind them.

Lavender came back in with Percy and another worker.

"Hello Ron!..How's the training coming?' asked Percy.

"Okay." said Ron.

They walked out and Lavender walked back over looked happy.

"Why did you kiss me?!" he asked at once.

"Oh, lighten up!I was just being friendly." she said,

"Friends don't go and kiss their friends..that's weird" said Ron.

"Whatever, look my schedule is packed so lets get this training session over with."

Ron nodded, he didn't want to argue at all. He wanted to get this over as soon as possible.

By the end of the day he was wore out. He apparated at the Burrow and found Hermione talking enthusiastically with Ginny.

"Hermione can I talk to you?" he asked.

"Sure!" said Hermione.." Ginny, I will be right back!"

"Thats fine." said Ginny.

Ron and Hermione went upstairs to his room.

"So how was work?..Lavender didn't try anything did she?" asked Hermione.

"Work was tiresome but great all the same..Lavender didn't do anything out of the ordinary" he said.

He then guiltily thought about how she had kissed him...but it was only a peck on the cheek and he told her not to do it again..it wasn't worth getting Hermione upset over.

"Well, that's good to hear!" said Hermione, and she kissed him.

"Yeah, and I will be getting paid in a few days..so we can start looking for a place to live in the next couple of days, isn't that great?!" he said excitedly.

"That's better than great.." she said.."Only I think Ginny will be lonely by herself, but she goes back to Hogwarts in a couple of weeks, so I can just apparate here when your at work to keep her company."

"That sounds good, and don't forget to plan the wedding!"he teased.

"How could I forget?!" she smiled.

"Well, it will be here sooner than you think" he said and kissed her again.

"The sooner the better.." she smiled.." I better get back down there, me and Ginny was talking about something important." said Hermione,

"Okay, I will just rest for a bit" said Ron.

Hermione nodded and walked out of the room.

Ron lay back on his bed, every muscle ached, even though he didn't do much, it was just the whole stress of the situation.. having work.. getting married and having to prepare the wedding, the break up of his best friend and little sister..picky soon-to-be in-laws, finding a place to live.. and Lavender...

It didn't take much for Ron to fall asleep however, he only woke for a minute, hours later when Hermione had come to bed and lay next to him, kissing his forehead.

"I love you Ronald Weasley...." she whispered.

"I love you too.." he answered, half asleep.

He wished he could have laid there forever instead of having to deal with what he would have to for the next few days.

A/n: please review!!!!!!!!!!!!! ^_^


	19. Brandnew Beginnings

Hey all you folks! Lauren here, with chapter nineteen! It took me a while cause I couldn't decide whether people in the wizarding world received paychecks, or if they received pay in some other form, but I decided, hey, why not, paychecks rule! Other than that, it's all ready! Hope you all like this one!

Lauren

Disclaimer: Okay, okay, we all know I'm a genius, (go with me here…) but I'm definitely not brilliant enough to come up with Harry Potter and all that stuff. Okay? All right, now that we've got that all cleared up…on to the story!

Chapter nineteen

Brand-new Beginnings

Ron woke up every morning for the next week, taking advantage of every minute he could spend with Hermione, and dreading each moment he was forced to leave her. But somehow, he was able to get through the days at work, ignoring Lavender whenever possible, and thinking of what else, but dinner, and Hermione. And luckily for him, that week passed by with very little physical contact between himself and Lavender; she hadn't pulled off anything like kissing him on the cheek, like she had before. It still made him shudder just thinking about it. 

Friday evening, Ron opened the front door, and closed it quietly behind him at the sound of Hermione's and Ginny's chattering. He slipped off his shoes gently, then snuck over to the kitchen, where the two girls were seated at the table, talking about none other than the wedding. Ginny raised her glance to the doorway and spotted Ron, who quickly raised his finger to his lips to quiet her. She smiled, then looked back down at the pictures Hermione was showing her. 

"So Hermione, what'll it be, then? Roses, or daisies? Or are you still stuck on the lilies?" Ginny asked, to keep Hermione distracted.

"Well, you know, I'm still not sure yet. Maybe we should ask Ron what her thinks. Speaking of, I wonder where he is, it's getting a bit late…" she said, as her mind drifted to thoughts of Ron and Lavender. She bit her lower lip anxiously. Just then, Ron slipped his hands over her eyes.

"Ginny, what the-"

Ginny giggled as Ron came forward and sat in a chair next to Hermione, still covering her eyes with one hand. With the other, he reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope, and slipped it into Hermione's hand. 

"Go on, open it!" he exclaimed, evidently excited. Hermione, had her eyes not been hidden, would have given him a questioning look for that very reason, but since she couldn't, she opened the envelope and pulled out it's contents, a thin, small sheet of paper. Ron pulled back his hand, and Hermione looked down.

"Ron, I'm so proud! Your first paycheck, oh this is so exciting!" yelled Hermione, as she leaned over to kiss him. Ginny clapped for Ron, but he was too preoccupied to stand up and take his bow. Mrs. Weasley came down from upstairs to see what all the ruckus was about, and when she saw the check lying on the table, it was all she could do but congratulate him as well. By the time Hermione let go of Ron, the whole family was in the kitchen. Ron went a little (okay, a lot) pink in the ears. He was glad Hermione and Ginny had been excited, but he hadn't anticipated the whole household practically having a party; it was getting a bit embarrassing. He bent low to the table, grabbed Hermione's hand, and quickly led her through the crowd as best he could, until they escaped into the hallway. Hermione gave him a tight hug.

"Hermione, this means we can start looking for a place to live! Well, naturally, this paycheck alone won't cover the expenses of a house, but now that we've got something to start from-"

"Ron, we don't have to live in a house, I mean, an apartment would be fine, it doesn't matter! As long as I'm with you," she said, pulling her arms back to hold his face in her hands. 

"I know, I know, but we can't really have an apartment if we're going to-"

"-Have oodles and oodles of kids? Hmm, good point there…" she said pensively. "Well, we can always…well, how about this: we find ourselves a place to start off with, and then, after we get completely settled and everything, after the wedding, and I've gotten a job, and we are ready for our oodles and oodles of children, we can find a bigger place! What do you think?" she asked happily. Ron rubbed his chin thoughtfully, eyed Hermione decidedly, and nodded. 

"Hermione, that sounds brilliant," he said, leaning in for a kiss. When he pulled back, he felt his arm being tugged back in the direction they had just left from. All of a sudden, he was back in the kitchen, where he was thus consumed by his family's congratulations, while Hermione looked on with Ginny from the corner. He pretty much didn't make it out of that room for another three hours. And that was because of Hermione's dragging his half-asleep self up the stairs. 

The next morning, Hermione walked down the steps into the living room, where she found Ginny sitting on the sofa, holding what seemed to be some parchment. Hermione sat down next to her and peered over to see what she was holding. Ginny was too lost in thought to notice, so Hermione slid the paper from between her fingers and turned it over. It was a letter to Ron. 

From Harry.

"Oh, Ginny…" she whispered. Ginny merely blinked.

After a moment, she looked up at Hermione, her eyes full of disdain.

"I had almost forgotten about him. I had been so very close. Things were beginning to become normal again, you know? I knew it had to happen sometime, but I was hoping it wouldn't be for a while, at least until I had completely gotten over him…Hermione, I'm so pathetic! I can't even get over one silly boy! Why is this so hard?" she nearly cried, but Hermione did her best to calm her.

"Ginny, I'm really proud of you, you know that? I mean, I can't even begin to imagine what I would do without Ron, and I don't want to bring this up, because I know it hurts you, but I have to…what I'm trying to say is, these past few weeks, you've been so unbelievably strong. I wouldn't know what to do if that happened to me, I would be an absolute mess! In thinking about how much it hurts, you haven't been able to see how much progress you've made! You're amazing! Ginny, you're not pathetic. Not on bit. And you're right, though Harry is one of my best friends, he is a silly boy. And the fact that you can admit that just shows how much you've grown, and how much you've gotten over him. Don't you see?" Hermione took Ginny's small hand and gave it a small squeeze. 

"Just think about that, will you?" she said with a smile, and she left to take Ron his letter. Ginny stayed in her spot, resting her hand on her chin and sighing. _Well, she does have a good point…maybe I am getting over him…_

Ginny wasn't quite sure whether this was a good thing.


	20. Hogsmaede Home

A/n: This isn't gonna be long, because well, I don't have much to say...But I do wanna thank all our reviewers, did I mention you people rock?! ^ ~ 

Disclaimer: The characters belong to J.k...we are just expanding on her wonderful idea.

Chapter 20: Hogsmaede Home

Hermione walked up the stairs to give Ron his letter, she felt like crying for Ginny, she could only imagine how it must be fore her, but Hermione didn't even want to imagine.

She reached Ron's room and opened the door...Ron ran over and hugged her. That seemed to lift her spirits a lot, she loved seeing Ron so happy, these last few weeks he had been having a rough time.

"I can't wait to get out of here, to begin our life together..." said Ron, he wrapped his arms around Hermione, and kissed her. 

"Yeah, can't wait" she said, her voice shaky.

Ron noticed that something was wrong and looked at her with concern.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"Oh, it's nothing to do with moving or anything, I am going to love having more time with you and everything, its just..." started Hermione.

"It's just what?" asked Ron.

"I am worried about Ginny..." said Hermione quickly.

"But Hermione, Ginny has progressed alot over these past weeks, I think she is almost over Harry... why are you worried all of a sudden?" asked Ron, curiously.

"Yeah, she WAS making progress, but she is no where near over Harry...look, he sent you a letter, and Ginny got to it first..." she said.

"Harry sent me a letter?" asked Ron.

"Yeah, here it is..." she said handing him the folded parchment.

Ron opened it and Hermione read it with him..

Ron,

Hey, how is everything? How is Hermione? I can't wait for your wedding! I am still invited, right? I just thought I'd owl you to say that I am sorry the way I left things, and I hope Ginny is okay, I really feel bad for having to end it that way. But Gin is a strong girl and she will find someone who can be there for her and love her the way she deserves. On another note, the team has started training and it's tough work, we have to wake really early and stay up really late, but it's all for the name of the game, right? I've also met some nice people here too. Don't tell Ginny this , but I met this girl on the team.. we really hit it off. You know her, but I am not going to say much more...You'll just have to see. Don't get mad at me about this, It's just a part of moving on. Well, I had better go! Tell everyone I said Hi!

Harry

" What a damn prat!" exclaimed Ron.

"Ron, calm down.." said Hermione, but she felt her eyes watering at the thought that Ginny read the letter.

"Hermione! I can't believe he'd just throw Ginny's feelings to the side and just tell me, her big brother, no less, that he is seeing someone else!" he exclaimed.

"Ron, I know..I know...but you getting upset over it isn't going to make the situation better..." reasoned Hermione.

"I hate seeing my sister cry, and knowing my freind caused it makes me mad!" said Ron.

"But remember that he didn't intend on Ginny reading it, he was telling you these things as a friend, he didn't mean to hurt anyone.." said Hermione.

" I know that, but...I just feel so bad for her ...and there isn't anything we can do" said Ron.

"Well, she is going back to school in two weeks so that should take her mind off of things..." said Hermione.

"I know, listen, tomorrow I am off, do you want to go looking for an apartment?" asked Ron.

"Sounds good to me," said Hermione.

"Great, I can't wait!" said Ron.

" Ron..I know you don't really feel like it, but you do still have to write Harry a letter back... try to be as freindly as possible.." said Hermione.

"I'll do it when I can think straight." reasoned Ron,." right now I think it'd be best if we both went to bed so we can get up early tomorrow morning, its gonna be a big day!" he said grinning at her.

" You have a point there..." she grinned back, she wondered what it would be like to have there own place.

The next day Hermione was woke by a very enthusiastic Ron...

"Come on Mione! We have a lot of things to do today!" he said happily, shaking her shoulders to wake her.

"Ron, it's early..." she said, sitting up groggily.

"I know, it's good to get an early start on the day!" he mused.

"Can't I sleep 30 more minutes?" she asked, pleadingly.

"Nope, come on sleeping beauty! Time for breakfast." he said.

They both changed and went downstairs to eat, they where the only two awake. After eating Hermione felt more awake and ready to go.

"So where do we go from here?" she asked.

"Well, why you where sleeping I looked in the housing listings in the back of the Daily Prophet and circled the ones that sounded good...and we can go and check them out today!" said Ron.

"Now why didn't I think of that?" asked Hermione.

"Because you where sleeping like a baby" said Ron, he kissed the top of her head.

"Well, you ready to go?" he asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be.." she answered with a grin.

They apparated to a few apartments until they found one that Hermione and Ron both agreed on, it was nice and fairly priced, and in Hogsmeade. So Ron gave his paycheck for the first months rent.

They where both so ecstatic to finally say they had a place of their own, they reasoned that they would try to move as much as they could that day and sleep at the Burrow for one last night...then They'd finish the task the next day.

Hermione also reasoned that it'd be a great thing to get Ginny's mind off of Harry if she came over to help unpack and decorate. She was happy that they where so close to Hogsmaede, it'd be easy to shop for some of the wedding supplies there.

Once they where done for the day, they both apparated to the Burrow, and laid on Ron's bed, both looking at the ceiling...It was strange to think that this would be there last night there.

a/n: yeah, I know it was short..sorry, well, anyways, please review, and don't worry I assure you that Lauren's chapter will be better than this...^ ~


	21. Messy Moving

A/N: Hey there! It's Lauren here, and I've got chapter twenty-one for ya! Yay! I hope you all like it, it was a little weird to write, but I hope you like it all the same. It's extra long for your enjoyment! Hope you like it!

Lauren

Disclaimer: Harry Potter's too cool for me to own! 

Hey guys, Lauren here. 

Chapter twenty-one

Messy Moving

The next morning, Hermione rolled over against Ron, knocking him onto the floor. **Huh?** he mumbled, rubbing his head and getting up to his feet. Once he stood up, he looked down at Hermione, who had a big grin on her face. He rested his hand on her forehead and gently patted her head.

"Oh, watch it, you'll get yours soon…" he whispered playfully. Hermione grinned even bigger, and he bent down to kiss her cheek. She fought the urge to open her eyes and ruin the whole joke, even if she was smiling like a banshee. But she slipped her hand behind his neck and pulled him closer to kiss him back. He sat back down on the bed and immediately felt a sense of immobility come over him. _Wait, why am I awake? It's Sunday…time for sleep again!_ Okay, so Ron lay back onto the bed and snuggled with Hermione. It didn't take long for them to fall back to sleep. 

Had Ginny not come to wake them up two hours later, they may as well have slept all day. But nooo, it was time for moving. Ron was going to pack their things, while Ginny and Hermione went to Hogsmeade to begin the wedding shopping. Both Ron and Hermione were beyond excited for their big move. Sure, Ron had spent his entire paycheck on the first month's rent, but it had been completely worth it. A place of their own…Ron nearly giggled at the thought. _Wait, I don't giggle!_

Well, nearly.

After Ginny left, the two slowly got up, dressed, and headed down the stairs. Ginny was waiting for them at the table, hands crossed. Hermione noticed a look of anxiety on her face as she took a seat next to her.

"Ginny, what is it?"

"Oh, nothing, I just, well…it's gonna be a little weird when you guys leave, you know?"

"Ginny, we're just an apparation away, you know that. Whenever you need us, we'll be there in a second! And besides, school is starting in two weeks, so you won't be alone. And remember, you're still helping with the wedding shopping, which we have to do this week before you leave. Actually, you're welcome to stay with us, since we live in Hogsmeade, we'll be shopping right down the street, so it may be easier that way. What do you think?" 

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't want to impose or anything…you guys are just moving in, you probably want time alone for once, don't you?"

"Ginny, we'll have plenty of alone time, once things get settled, don't worry about it."

Ginny looked back and forth between Ron and Hermione, making sure they were both sure about this. When she seemed satisfied, she nodded her head happily. Hermione looked over at Ron and grinned at Ginny's excitement. It was a good thing school was starting so soon, Ginny really needed the distraction. Hermione wasn't sure she could take much more of Ginny's pain, it hurt her too much. And if it was hurting her that much, it was definitely hurting Ron. But she knew what she Ginny had meant about them moving out; it really was going to be weird. She could remember all the time she, Ron and Harry had spent together there, and now…now they were facing the real world. No more school, no more being just down the stairs…yes, she was ecstatic to be living with Ron, it was a dream come true, but she was a little scared. Scared of not being under the safe roof of Hogwarts, or the Burrow. She came to the harsh realization that they were going to be taking care of themselves. As she thought about what all this meant, Ron cleared his throat.

"Well, I suppose I should start packing then, no?"

"All right, we'll be going then as well," Hermione sighed. She had sort of been dreading the actual shopping part of planning the wedding for some time now, but it's a dirty job, and someone's gotta do it, right? After walking with him upstairs, she kissed Ron good-bye, and the two girls headed back to the kitchen, and Hermione couldn't stop worrying about the future. Where they really ready? Would they be able to support themselves? She decided then and there that she would probably ease her mind if she… 

"Ginny, what would you think if I got a job?"

Ginny almost giggled, avoiding the glare from Hermione and looking at the moving floor beneath them. 

"Hermione, is it really necessary? I mean, right now, you don't have to be thinking about that. You should be focusing on the wedding, don't you think? Ron's already at work, and if you start now, no one will be working on the wedding! That would be, well, disastrous. Just wait Hermione. It'll be fine. Afterwards, then you can start thinking about it, all right?"

Ginny had a point, which Hermione seemed to have noticed. She fell silent and returned to herthinking. There really wasn't much to shop for, or so Hermione presumed. Incorrectly, obviously. Ginny knew better though.She was prepared.

The girls made their way downstairs to the kitchen, where Mrs. Weasley was ready with the pot of floo powder. 

"Ready, girls?" she asked sweetly.

"Mum, you're coming with us?" asked Ginny incredulously. For some reason this made Ginny uncomfortable and embarrassed.

"Well, I thought I might be of some help, seeing as how I've actually had one of these thing…Hermione, I hope you don't mind, if you do, I'll stay behind and let you girls do it yourselves…" she said with a resigned look on her face.

"Mrs. Weasley, I'd love for you to come, we could use all the help we could get! I mean, I barely know where to start!" Hermione rebutted. Mrs. Weasley smiled, then held out the pot of floo powder. They both nodded, took a pinch of the glittery substance, and traveled through the fireplace, ending up in a dress shop. Hermione had never noticed the bridal shops in Hogsmeade before, she figured she had simply overlooked them all those times before. In fact, there were so many that they didn't know where to start. Luckily, Mrs. Weasley was quite helpful. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Five whole hours later, the sun was setting over Hogsmeade as three women made their way, hands full, through a fireplace to a beautiful apartment building a few blocks away. Inside, Ginny and Mrs. Weasley set the several bags down. Hermione flicked on a light switch, and the two gasped.

"Hermione, it's really nice! I mean, it's not that small, and sure, it's simple, but it's, well, it's cute, you know? Oh, Hermione, I love it!" Ginny beamed. Hermione smiled. Mrs. Weasley looked too happy to speak. As the three admired the apartment, Ron came in from the kitchen.

"There you are, I've been expecting you for two hours now! Sheesh, I got worried and everything, so I started unpacking and—dear god, how much shopping did you do today?" Ron asked, flabbergasted, and staring wide-eyed at the bags on the floor. He had reason, or so he thought: at least twenty bags and packages lay on the floor. Hermione smiled sheepishly at him while Ginny giggled to herself. Mrs. Weasley, on the other hand, looked at him like he had no idea what he was talking about.

"Ron, I'd like to see _you_ go shopping for a wedding! There's dresses to buy, accessories, decorations, why you have no idea!" she said, making Ron eat his words. He tried to imagine himself shopping for a wedding…_oooh no, never ever!_ he thought, shaking his head to dissolve the vision. The other three looked at him in confusion, as Hermione smirked. Ron was the one who smiled sheepishly this time.

"So, uh, shall we continue unpacking the boxes then?" he asked, changing the subject. 

A while later, fifteen boxes were spread across the floor, some opened, some not. Ginny was laying on the floor, half asleep, half unpacking, while Ron and Hermione were talking in the kitchen.

"You know, we should probably think about getting a sofa…" she stated, peering past Ron to see Ginny slumped against the wall, trying desperately to stay awake. 

"Yeah, she looks dead tired…she's staying with us, right? Are you sure she wouldn't wait a few days, at least till we get some furniture? I mean, _we're_ gonna have to sleep there, we don't even have a bed!"

"Wow, I guess we didn't think about _that_, did we…" 


	22. Important Invitations

A/N: Hey, sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up, I have been working alot on my other stories... My internet is gonna be shut off soon, so from now on it may take a while to get our chapters up, because I have to mail Lauren my chapters so she can put them up for me, but we will still be writing, never fear!

Disclaimer: Belongs to J.K....don't sue, I don't have any money, obviously...I can't even pay the internet bill..lol

Chapter 22: Important Invitations

Hermione and Ron thought about the 'no furniture' dilemma and decided they'd have to haul his old bed over. Mrs. Weasley also volunteered to help with the furniture, she had tons of unused things in the attic. They got a old fashioned green sofa that Ginny could sleep on and she also supplied them with dinner ware.

It was a whole lot different living on their own. It was strange to cook their own meals and depend on no one else but each other. And it was so quiet compared to the Burrow. They couldn't say if they where relieved or actually missed it all. But it was to late to turn back now. It was time to grow up and move away. It was just so scary.

Ron had continued getting up every morning to go to work. Lavender had become less of a problem since she wasn't training him anymore, he seemed to like his job now. Hermione still flinched in instant anger at the mention of Lavender's name, but they made the deal not to talk to Percy about it and leave well enough alone.

It had been fun for Hermione that Ginny had stayed, she probably would have died of boredom if she hadn't. Planning the wedding was like planning a dream come true to her. She couldn't help but smile when she thought that in a short few months she would be marrying Ronald Weasley, her best friend since 1st year, the one she had a crush on since she could remember. She couldn't remember ever being happier.

She had fun decorating the house and such, it was weird for her to actually have a place of her own to make up the way she wanted, she couldn't do that at her parents house the way she wanted, or hogwarts, or the burrow. Ginny had helped her too. Hermione was happy to see the progress Ginny had made in getting over Harry. Although she didn't believe that she would ever fully be over him, but she was doing her best. She only wished she would be able to withstand seeing him at the wedding. She did want everyone to be there...especially Ginny and Harry.

Within a short couple of weeks it was time for Ginny to go back to school, Hermione wished her luck in her new year. But a couple days after she realised she was going to be very lonely there by herself during the day, so she apparated to the Burrow to conversate and plan with Mrs. Weasley.

When she arrived she was bombarded with a huge hug by Mrs. Weasley.

"Hello dear! Long time, no see!" she said, happily.

"Been busy getting settled in, I guess" said Hermione.

"Understandable... It was so quiet around here with you all gone the past two weeks...I'll have to get use to that" she said.

"It's to quiet at our place now..that's why I came here..." replied Hermione.

"Well, your welcome here anytime! Afterall you'll soon be my daughter by law!" she said enthusiastically.

Hermione smiled, she was happy that Ron's parents where so joyful about the whole idea of the wedding. She still hadn't had any contact with her own parents. Every time she thought of it she wanted to cry. She was going to marry Ron no matter what they had to say. She loved him.

"You know, I always knew you and Ron would get together, ever since the first time you came to the Burrow, I was saying to Arthur just how perfect you guys would be. I couldn't imagine a lovlier girl for one of my sons." she beamed.

Hermione was shocked that Ron's parents had even spotted a 'thing' between them before they did. This made her happy, she wondered how obvious it was to everyone else.

"I remember that year, Ron writing to us this angry note about you turning him down for some yule ball to go with Viktor Krum... I don't think I'd ever heard him so angry. He really cared about you, why did you turn him down anyway?" she asked, curiously.

"Oh, typical Ron... He did not ask me properly, he asked me as a last resort when he couldn't think of any 'perfect' girls to go with. I had already been asked by someone, and since I didn't think Ron would ask, I agreed to go. Boy, was that a mistake, he threw this fit... ugh, that night was terrible." replied Hermione.

"I know Ron's temper and I know how he feels about you, I bet that wasn't the best mixture" mused Mrs. Weasley.

"I was wondering if you'd like to help me with invitations?" asked Hermione.

"Of course!" beamed Mrs. Weasley.

"Well, I have a basic list, I know there is more I need to add, but I haven't gotten around to adding them.." said Hermione, taking out a peice of parchment.

"Well, we have plenty of time to send out any extra invitations you've forgotten.." replied Mrs. Weasley.

"I wonder if my mum and dad will be able to make it...or want to.." said Hermione, after a while.

"Dear, I am pretty sure they will make it. I doubt they will want to miss their only daughter's wedding. They know it means alot to you, obviously. And if not, well, it's there loss really." she said, and sqeezed Hermione's hand reassuringly.

"Thanks.." said Hermione, trying to believe that her parents would come, and wondering if they would.

"I remember when I got married it seems like ages ago. Arthur and myself where alot like you two, I've noticed. We are so very happy together, we have a wonderful family. I wish you two the best." she said.

"thanks, but I don't think I can handle the 'oodles and oodles' of kids Ron wants right now..." laughed Hermione.

"I am sure when you both are ready you will make wonderful parents, I can't wait to have grandchildren.." said Mrs.Weasley, dreamily.

Hermione then glanced over at the clock, and noticed it was nearly time for Ron to come home.

"Um, not to be rude, but I need to be going, Ron's going to be home any second now..." sound Hermione, getting up.

"Oh, no problem dear, it's been nice talking to you... shall I finish the invitations?" 

"Uh, sure..go ahead..." she said with a smile.

"Okay, bye!" said Mrs. Weasley, Hermione waved and disapparated.

She arrived at the apartment minutes before Ron did.

He looked very tired. She went over and put her arms around him, and pulled him down for a kiss.

"Long day, eh?" she asked sympathetically. She would have traded spots with him, but they had agreed on her finding a job after the wedding.

"You have no idea, what about you?" he asked, resting his forehead against hers.

"I was really bored here by myself so I apparated to the burrow to talk to you mum, we got a start on the invitations.." she said smiling up at him.

"That's great Mione, It's sooner than you think, you know.."

"I want it to be sooner.." she said kissing him once more.

"So do I, believe me, there is nothing more I want than to have you as my wife.."

They stood there for a while in silence.

"I wonder how Gin is doing..." said Ron.

"Ron, she is probably doing great, and with her studies and friends as a distraction she won't have much time to dwell on missing Harry. Who knows, she may even find herself someone new, hopefully." said Hermione.

"S'pose you're right.." he answered, pulling away and stretching. He then sat on the couch, Hermione snuggled beside him and there they fell asleep.

A/N: Okay, thats the end my freind! I know it wasn't very long, but yeah.... anyways, please review!!!!!!!!


	23. Verecund Visitor

A/N: Hey you guys, it's Lauren here. I'm so sorry it took me so long to get this up, but things got so hectic, what with play rehearsal and softball tryouts, and tech and homework…wow, I never knew one's schedule could get so full! Anyway, this chapter's not so great, or eventful, but the next one will be, cause I set it up for Heather…speaking of which, assuming Heather's internet is down, I'll be sending this chapter to her so she can write the next one, so it may take a little while to get it up cause she has to send her chapter back to me and…crazy, I know. But we can do it! Teamwork! All right, enough of my chattering, enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: If I were J.K., I wouldn't even be in this country. No, I don't own Harry Potter. 

Chapter twenty-three

Verecund Visitor

The month of October passed more quickly than anyone could have imagined, especially with Ron at work all day and Hermione working nonstop to get everything ready for the wedding. As the date had crept closer and closer, she had realized that she had a lot more work than she thought. There were the flowers, the music, the location, the dresses and suits, the lighting, the food…sure, they had down some heavy-duty shopping at Hogsmeade that weekend, but that was nothing compared to what was left to do, and with Ron working and Ginny at school, it was basically all up to her. There was Mrs. Weasley, but she wasn't always available anyway. Fred and George had needed some help organizing things for the shop, so even she was preoccupied. Hermione couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by it all, and she couldn't wait to get it all over with. Not only to finally be done with the work, but she was having trouble waiting for the actual wedding. She wanted to be Mrs. Hermione Weasley so very badly. She was spending so much time planning her own wedding that she barely had time to actually enjoy their engagement. But she knew that, soon enough, the day would come, and it would be the best day of her life. 

It was on a perfectly breezy November afternoon that Hermione was paid an unexpected visitor. She was on the phone, calling god knows how many florists, trying to find someone with pink roses (honestly, was it really that hard to carry pink roses? Not like she was asking for blue or rainbow…) when suddenly, she heard a knock on the door. Surprised, knowing that Ron, first of all, wouldn't have to knock to get into his own flat, and secondly, wouldn't be coming home that early, she hung up on Bob, possibly the only florist in town who didn't carry roses, placed the phone on the table, and walked over to the door to look through the peephole. The person standing there, however, was someone she hadn't expected to see.

"Harry! Holy crickets, what are you doing here?" she asked, a feeling of sudden of nostalgia washing over her. _Sheesh, it's not like it's been **that**__ long since I saw him…_

She leaned over and embraced him tightly, pulling him into their flat before he even had a chance to say hello. Finally, she let him go, and he was able to get a good look of the place, from the perfectly clean kitchen to the absolutely spotless carpet, and let himself think how exactly like Hermione it was. His eyes finished roaming the room and rested on Hermione's smiling face.

"Harry, it's so good to see you. What brings you here?" she asked, walking over to the sofa to sit down, motioning him to follow her. 

"Well, we're playing a match here in a couple of days, so I thought I'd stop by and see my best friends. I assume Ron is at work-"

"What if, when he gets back, we all go out? It could be like old times," she said, becoming excited. _Wow, it really seems like it's been that long, doesn't it…_ But she noticed Harry's face fall. 

"Harry, what is it?" she asked quietly.

"Well, do you really think it's best if we wait for Ron?" he asked nervously. Hermione looked at him questioningly.

"Well, why not, I mean, what's wrong?"

"I just, um, well…last time we spoke, it didn't really end on good terms…he seemed really upset that I had, you know, started seeing someone else…"

Hermione furrowed he brow, fighting back laughter as she silently found amusement in the childishness of the situation. Why, it was almost like their fourth year, when Harry's name was pulled out of the goblet of fire…

"And I was also thinking that, well, you should meet her."

"Oh! Well, that sounds great, I 'd love to meet her!" she said, a little uncomfortable, but trying to show Harry she supported whatever he decided. Harry looked at her, worry in his eyes.

"Harry, he's gotten over that, it's time for you guys to reconcile anyway. He just has to accept that maybe you're not meant to be together…" she said, reading his expression. But even as she was saying this, she felt something icy settle over her heart, because she knew she was lying through her teeth. Harry, unaware of this, shook his head, seemingly agreeing with her.

"Yeah, I guess you're right…still, he could bloody well pummel me into the ground, but you know that well enough already. Okay, I guess we'll wait for him. And if he's still mad…well, at least I got to see you!" he said, with a nervous chuckle. But at least he was cheering up. Now, if only Ron would be so sensible…

Three hours and ten chess games later (Ron had insisted on setting up his old chess set on the table, even though Hermione heartily argued against it till they were both blue in the face; Hermione found it far less frustrating now though, since she was playing against Harry instead of the undefeatable Ron), Ron finally emerged through the front door, dropping his 

Keys onto the counter with a heavy sigh. Hermione shifted in her seat, sitting up straight, while Harry did just the opposite, shrinking into his chair. Ron, who had expected to see Hermione standing at the door of the kitchen, where she had always previously greeted him, walked into the living room, looking slightly ruffled. And then he saw Harry. Hermione eyed him carefully, and looked into Ron's eyes sternly. Ron took a breath, walked over to Harry's chair, and, quite unexpectedly, pulled Harry out of said chair. There was a moment of silent tension in the air, until…

"Harry, what the hell are you doing here?" Ron asked, laughing and pulling Harry into a hug to rival Hermione's. Harry was so glad that Ron wasn't angry, he didn't seem to mind the fact that he couldn't breathe. Hermione sat at the table, very, very relieved. Finally, Ron moved back, and they both sat down at the table. 

"Well, like I told Hermione, we're playing a match here in a couple days, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to see you guys," Harry said, getting back to Ron's question. 

"Oh, a match? Well, why don't we go watch? What do you think Hermione?" Ron asked, a grin spreading over his face.

Hermione smiled. "Of course, that would be great! How bout it Harry. Mind if we come watch?"

But Harry looked less than ecstatic. If Ron was going to meet his girlfriend tonight, he wouldn't expect Ron to want to see his match, especially since she would be there…playing quidditch. He wondered whether Ron remembered this. 

"Er, sure, why not? That sounds wonderful," he said finally. They all nodded in agreement, and Harry told them he would bring their tickets by on the day of the match. Then he shifted uncomfortably, because he wasn't sure if he wanted Hermione to bring up going out, it might have been a bad idea after all. 

"So Ron, what do you say we all go out, like old times?"

Oh great, she did it… 

"Yeah, that sounds great! Leaky Cauldron?"

None of them could know just how eventful the night would turn out to be…

Now, would you all be so kind as to review? Please? Yay!


	24. Broomsticks and Butterbeer

A/N: Hey all! Heather here! Thanks so much Lauren for being kind enough to send me the chapters and all! I really appreciate it! It's a boring world without the wonderful internet, but I will survive... hehe, I am bugging my family constantly. Anyways, I suppose you want more chapter rather than a huge author's note, so here we go!

Disclaimer: No, I am not J.K. Rowling, it doesn't take a 'Hermione' to figure that out, does it?

Chapter 24: Broomsticks & butterbeer

Hermione looked at Ron with a grin.

"The Leaky Cauldron sounds okay, but I was thinking that we could all go to the Three Broomsticks and get a few butterbeers, just like old times..." replied Hermione.

"I think that sounds brilliant Hermione, and it's just around the corner, always the practical one, eh?" said Ron, amused, he put his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

"Yeah, it's been ages since I've had a warm butterbeer, it doesn't sound bad at all." agreed Harry. He was glad that Ron and Hermione didn't seem very upset about the break up. He was sure Ron would have said something about it, but he was acting perfectly normal, as if nothing had changed. 

To be perfectly honest, it took him a while to forgive himself for the break up. He knew that Ginny was a wonderful person and she cared about him deeply, he felt for her the same way. But he didn't think he could deal with the pain of knowing that when he was gone, Ginny wouldn't be there with him, that she'd be waiting for him all alone. He couldn't have her do that to herself just for him. He knew that she could find someone very easily to care for her and be there for her whenever she needed, and it's what she deserved... even if it wasn't him. He didn't break up with her out of spite, he did it out of love.

He really didn't think he could ever move on from her. He stayed up all hours of the night when he left. It made him ache knowing he made her cry over him. He wanted to go back so badly and hold her in his arms and never leave her side, but he couldn't... it was for her own good. When he started on the team it made the situation easier as he didn't have much time to ponder on how Ginny was... he didn't think anyone could ever replace her in his heart. Although a few weeks into training he met a girl on the team that he remembered very well from Hogwarts. She quickly made him forget his worries, and even though he missed Ginny dearly he even stopped thinking of her so often. She got him out of his depression and they had fun together. Soon, much to his surprise, he found himself falling in love with her, something he didn't think would be possible after Ginny. They started dating, at first he felt guilty, but it quickly faded. He didn't tell her about Ginny, however, it was to hard to talk about, he wanted to forget his feelings for her. Although it would be nice to talk to her and salvage a friendship still. He didn't know how to explain it to Ron and Hermione, or mostly Ginny. He didn't even know if Ron still remembered the letter he sent to him previously, he was nervous to bring it up.

After Ron had changed into something more casual than his work clothes, they enthusiastically made their way down the street of Hogsmeade. Harry thought it was really cool that his friends had gotten an apartment there, and he was sure Ron was with all the candy and joke shops... They might be out of school and considered adults, but some things never change.

It was a weird feeling. He was walking in Hogsmeade with his best friends, like they were still in school. It felt like nothing had changed. Though it was a bit different considering Hermione and Ron never held hands when they went before. Harry smiled to himself. He was so happy that they were so in love, it was obvious in school to everyone except them. It was also weird being an adult here, he watched as students from Hogwarts rushed passed him talking excitedly.

Finally they reached the Three Broomsticks and entered.

"Hasn't changed one bit," replied Ron, with a grin.

Harry looked around, it hadn't changed at all. He watched as Ron took out his wallet to go pay for drinks.

"No, Ron... I'll pay for it," said Harry, quickly.

"You sure?" asked Ron.

"You need to save every galleon for that wedding of yours," winked Harry." Go get a booth and I'll be over in a minute."

"Okay, thanks Harry," said Ron as he pulled Hermione over to get a booth. It wasn't going to be hard to see them married at all, they already acted like they were.

As Harry went to pay for some butterbeers, Hermione and Ron found a booth in the far corner of the room.

"Did you invite him here, Hermione?" asked Ron.

"No, he just dropped by... I am glad you are being rational about this," said Hermione, kissing his cheek.

"Ah, a professor might see you kissing me," teased Ron, Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "Anyways, what happened was between Ginny and Harry, it's not really my place to hold grudges, you know." shrugged Ron.

"Ron, your sudden maturity is scaring me," teased Hermione.

"Oh, thanks tons 'Mione, but it isn't maturity, it's just common sense." said Ron, seriously.

"I was only joking, I think it's great that you've forgiven Harry, and it certainly looks like he is grateful as well." smiled Hermione.

"What are friends for?" shrugged Ron.

"I love you, wise one," grinned Hermione and kissed him again.

"Oh, you meant me?" teased Ron, with a grin. "You're pretty clever yourself, and for the record, I love you too."

"Well, I think I am going to use the ladies room quickly before Harry gets back," said Hermione, getting up and walking away.

"Don't get lost now," joked Ron as he watched her walk away.

Hermione was surprised, however, when she walked into the restrooms. Of all people she could have ran into at that particular time, it had to be Ginny....

"Hermione! Wow, I didn't know you were here!" exclaimed Ginny, grinning widely.

"Oh, I only just arrived... Ron and I thought we'd have a butterbeer for memory's sake, why are you here?" asked Hermione, nervously. She couldn't bring herself to say that Harry was there as well, she didn't know if Ginny was completely over him yet, she didn't know what to do.

"It's the first Hogsmeade visit for Hogwarts students today," replied Ginny. Of course! It was obvious now that she thought of it.

"Were you leaving?" asked Hermione, nervously.

"Yeah, Colin is waiting for me in Zonko's," answered Ginny, a blush appearing in her cheeks.

"Colin, eh? Are you two dating?" asked Hermione, curiously.

"Well, this was our first date actually," replied Ginny, biting her lower lip nervously. "Hermione, this is all just so new to me... I mean, Colin has been really great and very supportive since I told him about Harry and the break up and all... he helped me get over him. He's so sweet, I couldn't ask for a better guy. After Harry I didn't think I could be happy enough to date again, but now... I, well, I haven't felt this happy in along time." said Ginny, happily.

"That's great Ginny, it really is. I'm happy for you!" said Hermione. She was surprised that Ginny had started to date so soon.

"Thanks Hermione, how's the wedding coming along?" asked Ginny.

"It's coming, I just wish it'd come sooner," replied Hermione.

"Well good luck... I can't wait until it arrives!" said Ginny, enthusiastically. "I best be going! Enjoy your butterbeer!"

Hermione nodded as Ginny exited. A few minutes later she settled next to Ron in the booth, Harry sat across from them looking happy and nervous. That was close, Harry and Ginny had missed each other by mere moments. Hermione couldn't help but think what would have happened if they had seen each other. She doubted if either was **really** over the other. In fact, she knew Harry would probably be very upset if he knew that Ginny was with Colin. She wasn't going to mention it though, as Ron said- it was their business.

"So how's the wedding coming along?" asked Harry, taking a sip from his mug.

"It's alot harder than it looks... I can't wait until the day finally comes," replied Hermione.

"'Mione, you're suppose to have fun spending my money on the wedding," teased Ron.

"You could help at any time, you know. For Pete's sake, right now I am stressing over getting pink roses," laughed Hermione.

"Hermione, you know you can just use magic to change the color," replied Ron, matter-of-factly.

"That's right! Ugh, and here I was putting myself through all kinds of confusion... I swear, here lately you have been the brains of the operation... I think I am losing mine," she said.

"Nah, you're not losing anything..." grinned Ron.

"So how's you're job? I left before you started," said Harry.

"It's a job, it gets the bills paid and all. I am not to happy with certain co-workers, but other than that it's pretty simple work," said Ron.

"How is it with Percy as a boss?" asked Harry.

"Oh, it's splendid !Even more considering he's dating Lavender, of all people, and she works in my department. I try to avoid her as much as possible, she hasn't tried anything conspicuous though, shockingly. Though I really doubt she is with Percy because she is attracted to him. She's up to something, I just don't know what right now," said Ron.

"Poor Ronnikins has the women just fawning for him, eh?" teased Harry. 

"Only mental ones," muttered Ron. Hermione slapped him playfully on the head.

"I'm mental, eh?" asked Hermione, an eyebrow raised.

"In the best sense possible, it's why I love you," grinned Ron.

"Okay, I guess I'll let it go for now..." she giggled, shaking her head.

Harry watched the two, fighting an urge to laugh. They hadn't changed much at all.

"So what about you Harry? How's life been treating you these last few months?" asked Ron.

"Well, you know... it was really tough at first. But, as you read in my last letter, I did find a really nice girl, she plays on the quidditch team, we've been dating for a few months..." Harry replied nervously.

Ron was silent for a moment, Harry was afraid of what he was about to say. Hermione cleared her throat nervously.

"Who is it Harry? You said we know her?" asked Ron finally.

"Well, I dated her my sixth year actually," said Harry.

"Cho?!" asked Hermione.

Ron unintentionally spit his butterbeer out .

"Yeah, we broke up because she had to graduate if you remember, so it was a shocker when I found out she was on the team," said Harry.

"Just so you know, Ginny got to your letter before I did and she knows you have girlfriend... it upset her pretty badly. You know she loves you, Harry... Cho?!." said Ron.

"She read the letter?" Harry asked, shifting nervously. "And yes, Cho... she's great really. Different from Ginny, nobody can take her place, but it is alot easier to see someone everyday... things with us were really complicated and all."

Ron nodded his head with a sigh. Hermione took his hand under the table, she gave it a squeeze understandingly. She knew how Ron felt, she felt the same way. She knew how perfect they were together, but their wasn't much they could do about it.

"I can't wait to see the game, it sounds like you guys have been practicing alot," sad Hermione, trying to change the subject.

"Oh yeah, we have been... can't wait. I hope the Cannons actually get to the world cup this year," said Harry.

"Good luck, you know I've always been a Chudley's fan," said Ron.

"Thanks," said Harry.

After a while of talking and reminiscing, Harry had to leave and Ron and Hermione walked back to their flat without a word until they got inside and sat on the sofa.

"Can you believe Harry is with Cho?! Poor Gin," said Ron quietly.

"Well, if she makes him happy we should be happy for him, besides Ginny looks pretty happy herself now," said Hermione.

"What do you mean?" asked Ron, curiously.

"I saw Ginny today as I was going to the girl's room... she was on a date," said Hermione.

"A date? Ginny?! With who?!" asked Ron.

"With Colin Creevy," answered Hermione.

"Colin?!... Well, as long as she's happy then that's all that matters. I just know Harry and Ginny are so great together... they are dating these other people just to prove they've moved on, when in fact they haven't," sighed Ron.

"I know Ron, but all we can do is watch... they'll wise up soon enough, hopefully." 

"Well, other than that it was great tonight, it was like old times... not to mention butterbeer rocks!" said Ron.

"I agree with you, it was fun," smiled Hermione.

"Make sure we get butterbeer for the wedding, will ya?" grinned Ron.

"Speaking of the wedding, it's only a month away, I'll officially be Hermione Weasley," she said grinning.

"I love the sound of that," smiled Ron, kissing Hermione sweetly.

"So, do you still wanna watch the match? I mean Cho will be there, and Harry will probably want to introduce her," asked Hermione, nervously.

"Mione, it's been ages since I've seen a live quidditch match. I don't care if Cho is there, I mean it's Harry's choice. I still want to go to the match, if you do, that is," replied Ron.

"Okay, then we go. I just wasn't sure if you was up to it or not," said Hermione.

They both sat there together wondering what the future would bring, and wishing the special day would arrive sooner.

~~~ That's the end of the chapter, hope you liked it!!!!! Please review1 It's appreciated, although I can't read them unless Lauren is kind enough to send them to me... but it's still nice to get 'em, ya know? ^_^ ~~~


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